Things That Go Bump in the Night

I have an irrational fear of being attacked by a shark which I think about every time I go swimming in the ocean.  Maybe it's there because I read JAWS as a teen. 

Then I read UNBROKEN, the impossibly amazing account of a WWII airman who was shot down over the Pacific Ocean and floated for more than a month in a limp life raft with two of his comrades. They were repeatedly circled and lunged at by sharks which they fought off with their oars.  At one point a Japanese fighter jet swooped down to shoot at them and the hero of the story jumped overboard, choosing the sharks over the bullets.    

My nightmare!  I think my heart would have given out before I ever became a meal for those sharks.

Hmmm....why am I thinking about sharks on this first sunny morning in the Blue Ridge Mountains?

It's the best analogy I can think of to describe what happened to me last night.

I had been asleep for about four hours in this deeply wooded and mostly deserted campground situated on the slope of lake.  When suddenly I was jolted awake, all my senses on high alert, a discordant tone playing again and again in my head.   I was trying to assess what was happening.   Had a group of people come up along side my camper and shoved it as hard as they could?   Why was it rocking?  

Then I realized, though I couldn't really see in the black night, that there was a low and rounded figure with some heft and a deliberate walk that was quickly circling the perimeter of my camper, and rubbing it with its (furry?) side as it went around.

I was on full alert in my little hut as I understood that a bear was outside and looking for food.  It clearly knew that there was someone (me!) inside.  Remembering that a window was opened near my head, I quickly reached up and slid it closed.  And then I just laid there, my heart racing, my mind listening, and my body keeping still.

I was aware that a bear was here only for a second or two, and after circling one time 'round, it was off in search of easier and tastier fare.

And though thankfully my brother turned out to be right this time, I  wondered if there would be more bears coming for a little sniff in the night.

Yikes!

Love,
Ronda

Posted Friday Sept. 23, 2016  9:15 AM