He’s Baaaaack Too! And He’s a “Yaster!”

I have a story about a great big “yaster.” That’s four-year-old talk for “disaster.” I kept my grand-girls for a few days while their parents were on a work trip. One of the grands was worried we wouldn’t be on time to school because…I’m her Nonna. She and her mom seem to think timeliness is not my strength. I do sort of think timeliness can be a moving target, but that’s probably a blog post for another day.

Getting to school on time doesn’t usually fall in my category of moving target timeliness so I was shooing them out the door on time to try to prove my grand-girl wrong. The first hint of a looming “yaster” was the booster seat wasn’t in my car. The girls climbed in and I picked up the booster seat to buckle into the car.

Unbeknownst to me – a Texas Spiny Lizard got a free ride into the car. If you’re thinking, “Big deal. It’s just a lizard!” You are thinking wrong. I can handle little lizards or chameleons. THIS creature was more of a baby dragon!! About 12 inches long and spiky. Google it. They are terrifying.

I didn’t know the baby dragon was in the car until I reached over to grab a piece of trash. Only it wasn’t trash. It was the baby dragon!!! I screamed and dropped the lizard. Ahem, baby dragon. The grands screamed. I hollered “Get out of the car! Get out of the car!”

They were very obedient and jumped out of the car in record time.

I moved the booster seat and the baby dragon ran at me. I screamed again. I think he did too. Then he leaped out of the car and scurried under it – heading toward the girls on the other side of the car.

I screamed, “Get back in the car! He’s heading your way!”

They were very obedient again. The youngest was crying hysterically. I wanted to cry too. I made sure the creature was staying put under the car while I buckled in the car seat. I repeatedly assured the grands the lizard wasn’t moving and couldn’t get back in the car.

I told the girls to wait a minute while I got the lizard out of the garage. Isn’t that what leaf blowers are for? I turned on the car, closed the doors, blew the wannabe hitchhiker out of the garage, and kept him scurrying into the woods. I quickly got in the car and reported to the grand-girls that I blew him across the driveway to where their grandfather’s smoker was. The oldest grand-girl said, “Good. Now Papa Jack can smoke it!”

I laughed as I put the car in gear to race – I mean drive – to school.

The morning was a “YASTER!” But we survived and got to school in plenty of time.

I’ve had other “yasters” in my life that didn’t involve reptiles. People around me have, too. Sometimes they are true “yasters,” and sometimes, they are blessings in disguise. Either way, at the moment, it feels bad, scary, and confusing.

When “yasters” attack, I want to run and cry hysterically like my grand-girls did that morning. I long for safety where bad things can’t reach me. But life isn’t always safe, convenient, or easy. Sometimes life is hard. Often, life is hard.

If you know me, you know I always try to look for the positive, to see a path through the hard times. But I don’t walk the path alone. I walk the path with Jesus because He has proven faithful to me throughout the many “yasters” in my life. Jesus is there to comfort, guide, give me peace in the storm, and assure me I am not alone.

Your unfailing love, O Lord, is as vast as the heavens; your faithfulness reaches beyond the clouds.
Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains, your justice like the ocean depths.
You care for people and animals alike, O Lord.
How precious is your unfailing love, O God!
All humanity finds shelter in the shadow of your wings.
You feed them from the abundance of your own house, letting them drink from your river of delights.
For you are the fountain of life, the light by which we see. Psalm 36:5-9

How about you? How do you handle the “yasters” in your life? Do you blame or ignore Jesus? Or do you lean into Him and trust Him to get you through the hard times?

Oh, it has been reported the baby dragon has been spotted in the garage again. I’m choosing to ignore that report. See how I focus on the positive. Or, in this case, ignore the scary thing.