Echoes From the Campfire

[Don Adkisson]

     “A chigger bite is triflin', too, but after a while it itches where you've got to scratch it.”
               --Elmer Kelton (Texas Standoff)

     "Catch us the foxes, The little foxes that spoil the vines, For our vines have tender grapes."
               --Song of Solomon 2:15 (NKJV)
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     There were two times that stand out in my mind. The first was a camping trip to Arkansas and Tennessee. The first night we camped in Arkansas and I woke the next morning with my legs covered with chigger bites. I had to spend the next week in the camp in Tennessee a scratching. The other time was when we were looking at land to build our house. The grass and bushes were high and those pesky critters found me again. They can sure cause and irritation and they are almost invisible.
     Now, I was not used to chiggers, we didn't have them where I grew up in Colorado. But once in a while on a trip to Oklahoma I would encounter them, but not to the extent of the two occasions mentioned above. Of course, in Colorado we have those pesky, blood-sucking mosquitoes. It wasn't the bite that was the biggest irritation, but the buzzing of a swarm of them around my head while playing ball.
     My next encounter with little varmints was when I lived in Florida, then moved to Texas. My, my they were aggressive and their bites could swell up a foot or joint. I'm speaking of those horrid little fire ants. I don't mind an ant crawling on me, but those fire ants can't crawl without taking a bite or more.
     All three of those things are really nothing but a nuisance, unless you're allergic to them. They are irritating, and if you're not careful they can get infected from all the scratching they cause a person to do. You may say to yourself that you're not going to scratch, but sooner or later they get so annoying that you just have to scratch that itch. It brings relief--for a few seconds.
     Little things can bring great annoyance to our lives as well. Sometimes we get impatient waiting in line for something. A little thing like that can hinder our peace, and our blood pressure. Why, it's just a few minutes longer.
     Perhaps you can recall the story of the young girl who claimed to be a princess. How did they check out her story? With a little pea. They put it under her mattress at night and she tossed and turned because she could feel it. Little things can bring a disturbance to our sleep and most of the time they don't even come to pass.
     The little things are out there, you might not even see them, but the next morning you might find yourself itching and scratching. Be aware of "little sins," for they can cause a great deal of irritation. They can spoil your day, your job, your relationships, and even your life. Don't worry about them, but understand they are out there. They're are kind of like those pesky parasites that get in your computer--viruses. Hmmm, if I recall this whole "pandemic" is caused by a microscopic virus. Something that can't be seen and look at what it has done.

D.C. Adkisson