Excerpt from novel - "What About the Rats?" Free Reprint Article

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Excerpt from novel - "What About the Rats?"

by Mervin Collier
3/30/2018 / Christian Living

What About the Rats?

Chapter 11

Jess, Carol and the boys loaded their relatively few belongings into the new blue pickup truck, which Jess had just purchased to help with the work on the farm. Jess had bought a new 10 cubic foot deep freeze to use to store garden produce when they had a garden in production, so the family put many of their belongings inside this freezer which had already been loaded in the truck.

The family started off on their move, in a happy mood. As they traveled along on this bright and sunny day, the family sang songs which the boy's had learned in Sunday School. Jess and Carol didn't like the boys to listen to songs on the radio (at least most stations). Even the ‘religious stations’ would allow anyone, who paid for airtime, to present their own strange religious beliefs, which were sometimes a gross distortion of God's word. Many of the songs on the secular radio stations had words which glorified illicit sex, hatred, and rebellion. The beat of these songs was designed to drive listeners into a frenzy. The boys would get enough of that kind of influence later and had already received a good dose in public school. For now, they didn't need to be exposed to such filth at such an impressionable age. This kind of thing could even have bad effects on stronger, more mature Christians - but at least the stronger Christians knew about the flaming arrows, with which Satan tries to destroy them. They are more adept at deflecting those arrows with the ‘Shield of Faith’ and are also more proficient with the ‘Sword of the Spirit’ (God's Word). Jess and Carol had known Christians who thought they could dabble on both sides of the fence and engage in un-Christian-like activities (or sin). In every case, these people came to ruin. They either ended up leaving the Lord and his body (the church) for good or they had to repent with great emotional, mental and physical distress and torment. It always took them years to get back to serving the Lord the way they once had done.

The hours passed swiftly as the happy family traveled up the winding mountain road. It was getting near lunchtime, so Jess said "Let's stop up ahead at that big clearing and have a picnic. We're about an hour away from our new home. We need to rest for a while and get some of the kinks out of our legs." Everyone agreed this would be a fine idea, so Jess pulled off the road a few feet and everyone jumped out of the pickup. The boys ran around the truck a few times and decided it was time to go exploring.

Carol instructed, "Boys, stay within sight of the truck!" The boys nodded in agreement and started off for an outcropping rock formation which was about a 25 yards from the truck.

Carol spread a blanket under a big pine tree, while Jess brought the picnic basket from the truck. When everything was set out and ready, Carol called the boys to lunch. The boys ran up, all out of breath, and showed the adults the ‘marvelous discoveries’ they had made. Billy held up a quartz crystal rock that sparkled in the sunlight. He excitedly exclaimed, "I think this rock is made of silver or maybe diamonds or something!" Timmy was more reserved since he didn't consider himself to be a little kid anymore. He held up a plant which he had found and exclaimed, "We've been studying about this plant in school! It's a milkweed, Latin name ‘Syria’. It's called a milkweed because when the stem is broken, a fluid comes out that looks like milk. See!" Timmy abruptly stuck out his tongue and touched it to the broken stem, then made a puckered face, "It sure doesn't taste like milk, though." He threw the plant down and tried to spit the bitter taste out of his mouth, with a lot of sputtering but very little success. (It seems hands-on experience, is a little different than theoretical learning.)

The family held hands around the blanket and bowed their heads, in order to go to the Lord in prayer. They thanked God for each other, for the beautiful day and for the ability to enjoy it. They gave thanks for the food, they asked God to help the people who were sick and they prayed for those who didn’t know the Lord and were lost. They closed their prayer as always “In the name of Jesus.”

The family sat down on the blanket and as they ate, Carol commented that she didn't think she had ever tasted food quite so good. Everyone agreed and Jess said, "It may be the scenery, or maybe the solitude that makes it seem so good." Everything was quiet except for the birds singing, a few insects buzzing or chirping in the tall brown grass and the wind whispering through the big pine tree. All in all, it was a very restful experience.

After a few minutes of this solitude, Carol said, "This must be the way Adam and Eve felt when they were in the garden before they fell to Satan's temptation and sin entered their lives. I wish things could be like this always."

Jess added, "But we know it can't always be this way, because of the sin that's in the world. Because of sin, we'll have to get old and die someday - but because of what Jesus has done for us we'll be able to live forever with God when our life here on earth is over. That's why we, as a part of Christ's body, will never be without hope.

Paul wrote almost two thousand years ago, in Romans 8:38 & 39, "I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." - -

“I certainly thank God for Paul's writing, which was directed by God's Holy Spirit. If we didn't have this record of God's thoughts, we would never know how much God loves us and what He wants us to do. We'd be just like all the other people who reject God's wisdom and blunder through life, always searching for the truth but who never come to the saving knowledge of the Lord."

The family spent an extra hour there, while the boys ran off their excess energy. Jess and Carol sat under the big pine tree, just holding hands. Too soon, it was time to go. The family would have to hurry if they hoped to get to their new home in time to unpack, eat the evening meal and get things in order before bedtime. As they went on their way, each one was silently thanking God for this time they had shared. At almost the same instant, Jess and Carol started to say "We should come back here again when we have more time." They didn't realize they would enjoy their new home just as much (or more).

Soon, the blue truck turned south off the main road and started into the valley where their new home was located. The sun was starting to go behind the mountains to the west. It was a valley with high mountains on all sides with only this one road in or out. The mouth of the valley was narrow, only allowing room for the road and a small stream, which drained the watershed feed by the runoff of mountains.

As the truck turned onto the valley road, two burly guards slipped behind boulders which were halfway up the steep slope on each side of the road. Each man carried an AK-47 rifle and a pair of binoculars. Both men watched carefully as the truck labored up the steep incline into the valley.

The guards knew who was in the pickup and had received orders to let the truck pass without incident. Any unexpected travelers into the valley, however, would have received quite a different reception. One of the men unhooked a walkie-talkie from his belt and spoke into it "New owners just past post one. Everything is in order." A distorted squawking came back over the radio to which the man replied "Roger." and clipped the radio back onto his belt.

As the family proceeded farther into the valley, the Whitson children noticed that the farther they went, the wider the valley became. Timmy asked, "How big is this valley, Dad?"

Jess replied "Well Tim, its five miles wide at its widest point and fifteen miles long. About half the valley is owned by one man named Albert Stanley. The town up ahead is named for him and he had the big church building built, which is up there on that hill. I think you can just make it out past those trees on the right side of the road. It's about eight miles from us at this point. From what I hear, Mr. Stanley rules his holdings with an iron fist and isn't a very good neighbor. It would be a good idea if we didn't rub him the wrong way. I don't want you boys to get anywhere near his property. There's no use making any enemies if we can keep from it."

Jess guided the truck to the right, onto a gravel lane which crossed through the creek on the right side of the road. As the truck plunged into the water, steam rose up around the truck when the truck's twin mufflers hit the water. The water hissed and the hot metal groaned and snapped as waves splashed out away from the truck. Jess had to be sure to keep the engine running fast enough, so the water wouldn't choke out the engine as the water covered the end of the tailpipes but not so fast that water would be thrown up onto the engine and drown it out by shorting out the ignition system.

All at once both boys sat blot erect and shouted, "Hey! Hey Dad! Look! There's big fish swimming in this stream!" "Yes boys, there's good fishing here. Maybe you two can catch us some fresh fish for lunch tomorrow. How would that be?" Both boys bounced up and down in the cab of the truck in anticipation of the event. The parents thought someone was going to get hurt by this violent activity, so Jess instructed, "Boys, save some of that energy for use when you pull in those big fish. There's no use hurting yourself and then not be able to go fishing." This information sank into the boys thinking and they slowed down on their ‘number of bounces per second’ to a reasonable level.

Carol frowned as they came splashing up out of the creek, as she commented, "I don't think I could ever drive a vehicle through that water. I would just be too nervous to try it."

Jess said in a calming manner, "Now don't worry, dear. If you want to drive somewhere, I'll get you across the stream, and then you can take over. When you come back to the stream, just honk the horn and I'll come and drive the truck the rest of the way home for you."

The family soon arrived at the farmhouse. It was a typical old farmhouse, similar to many farmhouses which you might see in any rural community. The house was in bad need of paint and a couple of the windows were cracked, but the roof was in good shape. The house had a big front porch which ran the entire length of the front of the house. A few of the vertical bars (balusters) had fallen off the porch railing, but with a little elbow grease and ingenuity, it should be a simple matter to restore the place to its former grandeur.

Everyone jumped out of the truck and surveyed their surroundings. The property was located between the road and the mountains, on the south-west side of the valley. The farm wasn't very wide but it was long, stretching north and south. As the advertisement in the paper had stated, it was mostly trees and rocks. The home site was situated in a small clearing and was surrounded by a cluster of tall pine trees which had been there, maybe five hundred years or more. The house was on the higher ground where there was a natural clearing in the trees.

The house wasn't far from the steep rise of the mountain on the west, so the sun went behind the mountains in the middle of the afternoon. The light was reflected from the peaks on the other side of the valley, however, until past the normal time for sundown.

Carol commented, "I don't think I'll ever be able to get used to the sun going behind the mountain at three in the afternoon."

"They tell me it's really pretty here in winter", Jess replied, "when the sun shines on the snow-covered peaks on the east side of the valley at about this time of day. They say the blue sky behind the snow-covered peaks with the evergreens showing through the snow, is quite a sight to behold."

Carol thought about the prospects of that scene for a moment and then said, "You know, the more I think about it, the better this valley sounds. It certainly gives me a different perspective on life that was provided by our life in the city. It makes me feel nearer to our Creator!"

The family stood there looking at the mountain scenery for a few minutes. Each person felt that God was nearer to them than He had ever been before. It was Carol who first came out of her trance-like state. She looked around at the rest of her family who was still deep in thought and said "Why are we standing around here doing nothing? It's time for us to get to work. God has given us all this beauty and He gives us eyes and a soul to be able to enjoy it, but he expects us to be industrious and productive, just the same as He is. Now let’s get busy." Carol supervised the unloading of the truck.

All the boxes were taken to the front porch and arranged in order so that each one could be moved into the house as it was needed. When this task was accomplished, the family went into the house to look it over. Each boy picked out a bedroom for himself. (Miraculously, they didn't fight over the same room.)

All the furniture had come with the house. It was kind of old but was still serviceable. It was the kind of furniture that was made to last, not like the furniture you buy today, which falls apart before you get it home. The family had only to bring in their clothes and bric-a-brac in order to get settled in. The groceries were brought in from the truck and Carol began to prepare dinner, as Jess and the boys distributed the various boxes to the proper rooms. The boxes would be unpacked as time permitted.

In what seemed like no time, Carol had a delicious meal prepared which consisted of scrambled eggs and gravy. Everyone was starving because of the ‘lifting and toting’ they had been doing, as well as the effects of the crisp, clean mountain air. The family went to the Lord in prayer to thank Him for their safe trip, their new home and for the food which they were about to enjoy. They thanked Him for loving each one of them and asked Him to forgive them when they didn't live up to the best they could be. They asked Him to be with them and to help them to do better. They closed their prayer ‘In Jesus' Name’.

After dinner, the family washed the dishes, dried them, and put them away. Carol always washed the dishes because she was never quite confident that Jess or the boys would get them clean enough (but she really knew they would do a good job.)

When the dishes were done, they began to straighten up the house. Carol put sheets and blankets on the boy's beds so they could go to bed whenever they felt tired, which should be very soon.

As soon as all the chores were done, the family went to the living room and sat down for a much-deserved rest. After sitting there for a minute, Timmy looked around the living room and asked: "Hey, where's the TV?"

Jess told the boys that it was impossible to receive TV reception in this valley and that TV is a bad influence on young people, anyway. The boys groaned a little but accepted the situation but in poor spirits.

Timmy asked, "Dad, what are we going to do with all our time? We used to watch TV all the time back in the city."

Jess thought for a minute and then told the boys, "You know, this will be a good opportunity for you boys to catch up on your school work. There's no school within seventy miles of here, so your mother and I will teach you right here at home. We aren't trained professional teachers, but we'll give you individual attention. You boys didn't get personal attention in your old school, plus here, you boys won't have to worry about guns or drugs. We love you enough to make you buckle down and we know all the little tricks that you like to use to keep from doing your school work. Yes, you boys should be sitting in the catbird seat when it comes to getting a good education." The only response from the boys was a groan, while Carol did her best to suppress a giggle and hide her smile with her hand.

I am 80 years young, have 5 grown children with a passel of grandkids and several great grandkids. I have been a Christian for 65 years and have held the office of Deacon and Elder in my local church. We have been married for 54 years. (Wife passed away 4 years ago.)

Article Source: http://www.faithwriters.com-CHRISTIAN WRITERS

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