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Looking in the Window: Remembering a Lizard in the Sand

I carried the blue canvas stadium chair to the beach and planted it in the deep, white sand. A baby lizard lay in the seat. My husband, Rick, flipped it out with his hand and turned around to set up his chair. Tail and all, the tiny creature measured only one to one-and-a-half inches. Trying to move, it writhed in the grained earth.

Bright sunshine lit up the fall day, but the shore felt chilly to my bare feet. He must be cold. I stared at the lizard. His little arms and legs so thin; his fingers, like short pieces of thread, wiggled frantically. “Now you’ve done it.”

Rick sat down.

“He can’t travel on the beach,” I said.

Rick stood. Using his foot, he scooped up a large amount of sand with the lizard atop it. He took several steps, and the sand filtered to the ground, so he flicked off the lizard and repeated the process. At first the little reptile squirmed as though he tried to escape. But after a while he lay very still while Rick picked him up and moved him. At last Rick reached the fence in front of the dunes, where sea oats and vines grew. But Rick's foot wouldn't fit through the fence.

“I’ll get a piece of a vine and put it up to the lizard. He can grab hold of it,” I said.

Rick raised his dark eyebrows. “You can try.”

I poked a stem at the lizard’s feet. He lay like a stone. I tried again and got the same result. Finally, on the fourth attempt the lizard wrapped those tiny legs and arms around the vine and held on tight. I threw him over the fence into a patch of greenery. As far as I know, he’s enjoying his new home.

When I’m over-burdened and bogged down with problems or unpleasant situations, I often feel stuck like the lizard. I turn this way; then, that, trying to escape. My mind spins so fast thinking of possible solutions, but I get nowhere. I think if I just work a little harder, I can handle things. Eventually, I’m physically and emotionally exhausted. But I’m still writhing around in the sand. It isn’t until I ask for God’s help that I get relief.

Matthew 7: 7-8, “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.”

Comments

DanielleThorne said…
Thoughtful post. Sometimes all we have to do is reach out and grab that darn stick to save ourselves--but we just lay there frozen with grief. Silly lizards.
Laurean Brooks said…
Gail, this is a good lesson we all need to learn. I sometimes find myself getting frustrated over something, then think, "Why didn't I just pray about it before I got to this point?"

Duh. It looks like I'd remember to pray first..before I work myself into a sweat.
Gail Pallotta said…
Hi Danielle and Laurean,
Thanks so much for stopping by and commenting about the lizard.

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