Fatal Attraction
February 21, 2020 by Lori Freeland
Filed under Faith, Faith Articles
By Lori Freeland –
Last month I took a trip up north. From Texas, I flew to Wisconsin, picked up my mom, and drove her to our family reunion in Ohio.
Before our road trip began, we met my in-laws for breakfast at an old-fashioned diner in Sun Prairie. We enjoyed a great visit swapping stories and photos with my mother-in-law, Diane, and her new husband, Bob.
After the meal and four cups of coffee, I excused myself to run to the little girl’s room before we got on the road.
I took a quick glance in the mirror after I washed my hands. Not finding any food in my teeth or toilet paper hanging out of the back of my pants, I reapplied a layer of barely beige lipstick and fluffed my hair. The mirror approved and I sailed out the door ready for pictures and hugs.
Outside the diner, the four of us played rotating photographer. My camera held photos of me and mom, me and Bob, me and Diane, Diane and Bob—you get the idea. After final hugs, I turned to unlock the car and caught a glimpse of a large white square stuck to the back of my upper thigh.
A lone piece of toilet paper lay plastered to my black yoga pants.
Yoga pants are perfect for travel. The stretchy waistband and soft fabric assure a certain comfort factor during a long ride in the car; however, I did not realize yoga pants were also a toilet paper magnet.
I glanced around the parking lot, which stood empty except for my mom waiting by the passenger-side door. With a nonchalance I’d learned over the years of suffering from such disasters, I reached back, dislodged the paper, and nudged it under the back tire.
How did I miss that big white blob on my dark black pants when I performed my cursory check in the mirror? How many people watched me walk out the door of the diner with toilet paper plastered to my leg?
Just like toilet paper, sin is sticky.
It hangs on me in places I can’t see—even if I’ve looked for it. I need help to see what I’ve missed.
Lord, I cry out to you like David. “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting” (NIV Psalms 139:23, 24).
And help me remember when I wear those black yoga pants again to check them twice after a visit to the little girl’s room.
Lori Karvasale Freeland is a freelance writer from Plano, Texas. She holds a BA degree in psychology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, which comes in handy in homeschooling three children. After surviving a long journey through pediatric cancer with her oldest son, she has a heart for women struggling in crisis situations. When she is not working on her first novel, she can be reached at lafreeland@hotmail.com. Visit her new blog at http://lafreeland.wordpress.com/