"Those aren't poopy balls again, are they?"
As I arrived and saw them up close, it was confirmed. They were indeed poopy balls on the sidewalk, right underneath the Maple tree. From past experience, I knew this meant trouble. A few years ago, Mike and I noticed that the leaves on our Maple tree were disappearing at an alarming rate. We saw these mysterious, dried black balls beneath the tree and on the sidewalk, but had no idea what they were. I called the local County Extension agent to find out what could be the problem and what we could do about it. I told him about the mysterious black balls. He told me that the little balls were insect poop. The source of the poop balls were likely Gypsy Moth Caterpillars in the tree above. Even though I never saw any caterpillars, the tree was infested with them. The poop was evidence of the infestation. The Extension agent advised a special product to use that we could hook up to the water hose to rescue the tree of the pests that were eating it alive. After buying the product, I swept up the dried poop. Then I hooked up the product to the water hose and sprayed the tree down. For the next few days, I'd go out to the side walk and look for the poop. Remember if there is poop, there has to be a caterpillar somewhere! However I didn’t see any more poop, so I knew the caterpillars were gone. Which brings us to today. After several years of a "poopy-ball free" sidewalk, the balls were back. So caterpillars are in our Maple tree again. However, my reaction this time is a lot different because I know what to do. Rather than panicking, I simply got a broom to sweep up the poopy balls, went into the garage to find that product (which we started keeping on hand after the first time), hooked it up to the water hose, and sprayed the tree. For the next few days, I'll look to see if the caterpillars are gone - with the lack of poop balls on the sidewalk as evidence. If I see them again, I will keep treating the tree. If my efforts don't get rid of the caterpillars, then we will get some outside help. Here's my point: Sooner or later, we all have to deal with the messes of life, "the poopy balls." Whether they are expected or unexpected, they are unwanted. If you don't confront these now, you'll have a bigger mess on your hands later. Consider how people deal with excess weight or emotional eating. Their typical solution is to go on a diet. However, a diet is like just sweeping up poopy balls from the sidewalk. If they do not confront the source of the problem, then the excess weight or emotional eating habit will return! That is why I had to not only sweep up the poopy balls, but I had to deal with the source - the caterpillars that were generating the problem in the first place! That is what makes the Take Back Your Temple program different. We help you deal with the source of emotional eating and excess weight problems. We don't want you to spend your life just "sweeping up poopy balls" when it comes to your health. Instead, we want to help you identify the source of the problem so that you can deal with it with God's help. My prayer for you is that the Lord give you courage and strength to get those issues out of your life so that you can focus on fulfilling your purpose in Him. As you learn to handle situations in your own life, then you can help others to do the same. After that first incident with the caterpillars, I was walking one day and saw some poopy balls on a neighbors' sidewalk down the street. When I got home, I wrote a polite note about what the balls were, what they meant, and what she could do about them. Then I left the note on her door. She thanked me for caring later. That's what this life is all about. We overcome together by the blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony! Stay blessed, Kimberly Taylor, Author/Christian Life Coach of the Take Back Your Temple program
Leave a Comment