Written on December 23, 2009 – 6:00 am | by maxine |

The season of blessings and good cheer is upon us.  In just two days, people will be quoting those words, “Not a creature was stirring – not even a mouse!” 

It’s sad, but true.  Back last summer at the warehouse Mrs. Noah found a mouse in a big box of styrofoam packing wiggles.   It was stuck in there and couldn’t climb out.  Now this was a good thing because he/she had been messing up the warehouse for quite some time and there had been considerable conversations about the various options for getting it out into the great outdoors.  This was a golden opportunity.  Mrs. Noah loaded the box into the back of the van, she drove several miles away from the warehouse – way out in the country – and she let the mouse go free beside a nice big field.   The only thing is, it turned out there was more than one mouse and none of the rest of them had the good sense to fall into a box of styro wiggles!  Hence, much more discussion.

Finally, neighbour Ben leant her a live mouse trap.  Neighbour Ben had advised her to be careful to not catch the momma mouse because after all, you wouldn’t want tiny babies to be motherless, especially this close to Christmas!  Mrs. Noah actually fell for it when, without thinking, she instantly asked him, “How do you expect me to know if it is male or female?!!!”  Of course, as soon as the words were out of her mouth, she KNEW she had been had!  Anyways, the live trap was duly set out for over two weeks, baited regularly with tasty feasts of peanut butter, their favourite chocolate chip cookie pieces, and cheese.  No takers. 

Mr. Noah decided enough was enough and he set a traditional “death” trap.  Next day, one down!  A few days later, they found another tiny mouse just dead in the middle of the floor – probably died of loneliness or a broken heart.  Both were laid to rest in a ditch, albeit rather unceremoniously by Mr. Noah.  Anyways, for this Christmas season at least, at the warehouse/church there will be the memory of “no creature was stirring, not even a mouse!”

One day after the mice were all gone, a relative mentioned to Mrs. Noah that he has never been able to figure out how Mr. and Mrs. Noah have managed financially all these years because he always thinks of them as being as “poor as church mice.”  That’s when it hit Mrs. Noah – the church her husband and she serve as pastors, uses some of their warehouse space that has been renovated to serve as their church.  Yup, those little mousies loved to run all over the church piano – getting so excited in their praises to the Lord that their tiny, weak elimination systems left deposits all over the instrument and the sound equipment every week.  Like manna from heaven, they had been feasting on cookie crumbs that had fallen to the floor during the Sunday morning fellowship times.  She feels real bad – they had killed their maybe not so distant relatives – the church mice!

Now, the piano smells better, there are no telltale droppings, and all in all, at least for Mr. and Mrs. Noah, life will go on.  In a spirit of compassion, may I remind you at least during Christmas, the time of good cheer, blessings and sharing – remember to leave out a few crumbs for the mousies who might be in your abode!

By the way, I for one am NOT fond of mice for eating, although I used to like the chase.  I personally found them to be far too hairy and bony.  We cats who lived with Tom liked to catch them but we generally just left the little varmints on Tom’s doorstep as an appreciation gift for him.  After all, he fed us well so the least we could do was offer him something in return.  Share and share alike!

Oh yes, Mrs. Noah is getting “over it” and I am sure she will be fine and her grief will be short-term at best.  She’s keeping a big open box of stryo wiggles at the warehouse/church and gas in the gas tank, just in case!

Merry Christmas, from Gracie and on behalf of Mr. and Mrs. Noah, Andrea, and all of the four legged family members here.