I SAW A MOUSE - WHERE?

It always surprises me how much we have in common with people, how we can share such seemingly uncommon experiences with people and we never knew until something happens. Take mice for instance.

We had mice in the kitchen last year but through the careful deployment of mousetraps with a covering of peanut butter we thought we had won the ensuing battle. But they are back! Only this time, not in the kitchen but in the loft!

I was sitting in the lounge watching the TV a week ago when out of the corner of my eye I noticed something climbing up the outside wall by the front window. I went outside to investigate and much to my amazement, I saw a mouse! Where? Not on the stairs but climbing, yes, climbing up the outside wall. I couldn't believe it! As I watched Supermouse scale the brickwork - I really should have stopped it, but I was very impressed by its daring, skill and sheer cheek - it got onto the low level sloping roof above the front door and crawled under the lead flashing.

Given my success last year I decided to put my two faithful mouse traps with peanut butter up in the loft, assuming that is where he was heading, and sure enough, when I went back up a few days later, I had killed two of them. When I say I killed them, actually the traps killed them. (Is that okay or have I violated the commandment, 'Thou shalt not kill'? Does it apply to mice?) I reset them and sure enough the next day, two more! How many more wall climbing mice can there be?

Anyway, I don't tell you this story to impress you or to offer my services or start a new career, but to try to understand what begins to happen once I start telling other people about my experiences. You see, it seems that lots of people have had mice in their house as well, they have just never talked about it. But as soon as I had the courage to share my experiences I find out that I am not alone, many other people have had trouble with a mouse in their house. Then they start telling me their stories, offer advice about how they coped and suddenly I didn't feel alone, unique or a failure.

It happens so often. You are going through a particular period of ill health and you get a diagnosis and suddenly there are people all around you who have had it themselves or know someone else who has been through it. What you thought was just you has actually happened to someone else.

My mum has Dementia and when I talk to other people about it, they have experienced the same thing. People I thought I knew open up and tell me their story. Suddenly I realise I am not alone.

A number of years ago Kerry and I suffered the disappointment, pain and frustration of a miscarriage. As we tried to cope with it (actually I didn't do too well) and started to talk about it, suddenly people we knew told us of their miscarriages. It helped so much to know that we weren't on our own that other people really understood, that we hadn't done something wrong or failed in some way. It was still painful and difficult, but we weren't alone, it was okay.

Too often I am afraid to talk about what I am going through, what has happened to me and what is happening to me because I think it is just me. But I'm learning to talk about it and I find that other people are learning to talk as well.

I recommend peanut butter for catching mice, but I also recommend learning to talk about some of the really tough things you're been through or are going through. I am sure that you'll find other people who know exactly how you feel and I know that the Holy Spirit will use every experience you've had to help others to realise that they are not alone. Perhaps it will start with mice in the loft!