On Lice and Love
I teach. And I have lots of neighborhood kids around pretty regularly.
Which is fantastic, but does come with one teeny, tiny, little hazard:
Lice.
I despise lice.
Immediate itching begins upon the mere mention of them. They're creepy and crawly and hard to get rid of. My basic feelings are: UGH.
Earlier this year, one of the lovelies I see on a regular basis was discovered with lice. The day after said child had been leaning all over me and playing with my hair.
I mean, a lot of lice. I don't think I can explain to you the depths of the lice.
As soon as I could, I was at the store with lice spray, shampoo, laundry detergent. Anything I could possibly need to rid myself of any chance of the lice, I had it. Because y'all? I have a lot of hair. And it was all up over that child as they leaned against me that day.
I tied my hair up as high as possible and washed all-of-the-things and clothes in my entire apartment that just maybe could have been contaminated. Literally sitting in the middle of my living room floor, trying not to touch anything, waiting for the shampoo and burning hot water to do their thing. Combing strand by strand of my hair to catch anything possible.
Which I did. One tiny little bug.*
I about lost it. I kept combing out my hair, trying to convince myself that it hadn't been enough time for that little bug to do anything.
But I was also getting really frustrated with said child's parents, who knowingly (yes, knowingly, I had proof) sent their kid out into the world in that situation.
Until that still, small Voice whispered.
Nudged its way into my soul.
Will you risk lice to offer Love?
This question has sat on my soul since that day, and it's come up in so many ways. The crux of them all is: will you be inconvenienced for Me?
I've realized while pondering this question that I often hesitate to answer that question with a resounding YES. My heart wants to answer it yes, but my flesh isn't so willing.
As we continue into this year that is so still so new, yet already feels so battered, that question sits symbolic & defining for this year.
Will you risk lice to offer Love?
Oh dear Jesus, I hope and pray my answer is yes, always yes.
**The bug turned out to be simply the catalyst to this question. No other evidence of creepy-crawlies was found.
Which is fantastic, but does come with one teeny, tiny, little hazard:
Lice.
I despise lice.
Immediate itching begins upon the mere mention of them. They're creepy and crawly and hard to get rid of. My basic feelings are: UGH.
Earlier this year, one of the lovelies I see on a regular basis was discovered with lice. The day after said child had been leaning all over me and playing with my hair.
I mean, a lot of lice. I don't think I can explain to you the depths of the lice.
As soon as I could, I was at the store with lice spray, shampoo, laundry detergent. Anything I could possibly need to rid myself of any chance of the lice, I had it. Because y'all? I have a lot of hair. And it was all up over that child as they leaned against me that day.
I tied my hair up as high as possible and washed all-of-the-things and clothes in my entire apartment that just maybe could have been contaminated. Literally sitting in the middle of my living room floor, trying not to touch anything, waiting for the shampoo and burning hot water to do their thing. Combing strand by strand of my hair to catch anything possible.
Which I did. One tiny little bug.*
I about lost it. I kept combing out my hair, trying to convince myself that it hadn't been enough time for that little bug to do anything.
But I was also getting really frustrated with said child's parents, who knowingly (yes, knowingly, I had proof) sent their kid out into the world in that situation.
Until that still, small Voice whispered.
Nudged its way into my soul.
Will you risk lice to offer Love?
This question has sat on my soul since that day, and it's come up in so many ways. The crux of them all is: will you be inconvenienced for Me?
I've realized while pondering this question that I often hesitate to answer that question with a resounding YES. My heart wants to answer it yes, but my flesh isn't so willing.
As we continue into this year that is so still so new, yet already feels so battered, that question sits symbolic & defining for this year.
Will you risk lice to offer Love?
Oh dear Jesus, I hope and pray my answer is yes, always yes.
**The bug turned out to be simply the catalyst to this question. No other evidence of creepy-crawlies was found.
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