“There’s a snake in the window!”, she blurted excitedly while pointing. Stunned, three voices responded in unison, “Inside or out?!” Mariah’s mind was processing the question, but it was as if her voice was tangled up, and all she managed to get out was, “In the window!”
That didn’t answer the question, and it was a very important distinction. I had been sitting in a chair next to the window, bouncing my youngest grandson on my lap, when the excitement began. The window my daughter, Mariah, was pointing to was 6 inches off my left shoulder! Okay, maybe 12. Let’s not quibble over the distance. What’s important is that Drayke and I were close! Too close! What followed was a cacophony of voices in my own head, asking pertinent questions and demanding action! My muscles became confused by the mental ruckus, leaving me motionless while waiting for some brainy decision to be made.
The answer I wanted first was the one referring to the precise location of said serpent. Inside or outside?! Which is it?! But Mariah’s tongue couldn’t seem to find those words in the fraction of a second I had to decide what to do! At 64, with a argumentative back, and a toddler on my lap, it didn’t seem prudent to attempt a forward flip from a seated position. A feat that most certainly would be deserving of an Olympic gold medal, and a standing ovation! The standard “tuck and roll” maneuver was conceivably a better option, but the end result would leave Drayke and I, albeit farther from the window, on the floor! Not my first choice. I can get on the floor no problem. Getting off the floor is like solving one of those mind-bending puzzles that requires you to cipher which piece to move first. Though I would have the advantage of adrenalin, it might be wise to take a breath. A voice of reason in my brain shouted to be heard, “Act! Don’t react!”
Swiveling my head to get a bead on this snake, I noticed Mariah hadn’t moved from her position. A good sign. If it had been “in” the house she would have at least been standing on the table, if not in the backyard, abandoning us to fend for ourselves. My eyes searched quickly! Yep, there it was, outside flicking his tongue in and out. He appeared to be looking for a way in! I guess even snakes are searching for some relief from the hot and steamy Florida summer! We attempted to spin what the snake looked to be doing. Drayke may be too young to understand what we were saying, but my granddaughter is not. Nobody wanted her having nightmares about a snake in the house! We did see a small lizard that was observing this snake as intently as we were. I didn’t really want my young grandchildren to learn about survival of the fittest up close, but our slithering friend seemed to be ignoring the lizard, and just poking around the edges of the screen for a weak spot in our fortress. He did not find one, I am relieved to announce.
It was a great opportunity for the kids to observe him. We identified him as a rat snake, or a young black racer, and explained to Aurora that he is a good snake, but not all snakes are, so we never touch a snake. A good motto for staying out of the ER due to an identification error. We watched him for quite a while, moving across the windowsill, and through the bushes until he disappeared. Disappeared?! Where did he go? I don’t know! He was no longer in the bush, or the windowsill. He had to cross the walkway to get to the yard, but I didn’t see him do that!
Left with a mystery, Drayke would return to the window several times throughout the day. He wanted to watch the snake some more, but he was gone. However, I’ve no doubt we haven’t seen the last of him.
Dusty, our son-in-law, had gone to the garage through the kitchen, leaving the door open behind him. He was now backing up, staring in the direction of the common wall between the garage and the house. His eyes were big, searching, and the sounds coming from his throat were not words, yet convincingly expressed anxiety! What now? I’ve never known Dusty to be afraid of any vermin, so what fresh horror could this possibly be that had his rapt attention? Whatever it was, I was sure I wasn’t going to like it. “What is it?!” Mariah shouted. “Is it the snake?!” Dusty couldn’t seem to answer! Who had stolen everyone’s voice this day?!!!! Mariah declared that the best course of action was to just close the door and torch the garage. Dusty gained his voice, lest Mariah should go searching for matches. Pointing he declared, “It is the biggest wolf spider I have ever seen, and it just scampered across my hand”, as he had reached for a box against the wall!
Stepping with trepidation into the garage, together we looked to where he was pointing. I said, “That’s not a wolf spider. I’ve seen one before. That’s a cane spider!” I had encountered my first one when our son lived in Maui. It’s a special breed of BIG! He had to go! The particulars of how he left the vicinity was not my concern…..This was shaping up to be one exciting day!