Night Visitor

Hospitality is an art I've always tried to exhibit. I want my home to be open to guests at any time. Well, almost any time! Two nights ago we had a visitor whose appearance did not excite me. And he was NOT welcome in my home! No way - not at all.


My sweetheart was standing in our dining room near the entrance into our kitchen. A short time before that I had let Miss Savannah, my kitty cat, outdoors when she asked to go. Occasionally during the late evening she likes to sit on the patio and watch the nighttime world go by so I had no problem allowing her to go out that night. It's common for her to sit there for a few minutes and then appear at the patio door in the dining room when she is ready to come inside again. If we are not paying attention so we notice her patiently sitting there, she will hit the door with her paw to get our attention. As my sweetheart stood near the patio doors he noticed movement just outside the door. Thinking it was Miss Savannah, he looked up. Then he said, 'We have a visitor!' Assuming he meant Miss Savannah, and that she was ready to come in, I went toward the door to let her in. Immediately I realized she was not the one at the door. Looking in the door at me was another creature. Apparently wanting to come inside.

A raccoon! Cute little critter, he was. I didn't want to let him in my house. My first thoughts were for Miss Savannah's safety but I was fairly certain she was hiding somewhere nearby until this interloper disappeared. As my sweetheart and I watched this little fellow we realized he was not afraid of us. And we knew if we opened the door he would most likely come in and make himself at home!This is not the first time we have had a raccoon at our door, looking in to see what's happening inside. We are fairly certain someone is feeding him and that he thought we looked like the kind of folks who would share our goodies with him. I sat down on the floor just inches away from the door. He wasn't afraid of me, nor was he nervous when my sweetheart moved a bit. When I didn't seem to show kind hospitality he moved back a bit, sat down and made himself comfortable.Did he think he could wear me down? Sit me out? I think I convinced him I wasn't going to budge because a few minutes later he decided to check out some things he saw nearby.When nothing he saw appealed to him he decided to come back and try one more time to flash his big eyes and make me feel sorry for him. At least that's the way it seemed!After awhile he must have decided there was no way to successfully win my heart so he slowly walked toward the fence and my neighbor's big trees where raccoons have been seen before. Within just minutes I opened the door a bit and called Miss Savannah. She came running through the door in record time. She looked like she had seen a ghost! That was the last we saw of our nighttime visitor. He was gone - or so I thought! The next morning when I opened the blinds I couldn't believe my eyes. My Nerf football lay near the edge of the patio - but it didn't look the way it did when my grandsons last played with it.

And just a few feet away on the lawn - this:Was there a raccoon football game here? Or a feast? Or was this revenge because I would not invite him in? I'll never know - but I do know that, like Humpty Dumpty, all the king's horses and all the king's men can't put my Nerf ball back together again!