Last night I was in a deep, deep slumber when Annabelle the Cat came to my door and began her “I have hunted and brought you the kill” chant….so loud and so insistent that it overcame the earplugs. I stumbled out of bed, not bothering to put on my glasses, and headed to the door wondering what she could have caught? We’ve had a kitchen mouse in the past but she had never helped any with that! In fact, she had never caught anything before that I knew of….so why the hunter meow?

My groggy mind hit upon a possibility and my heart sped and my ears got hot. We have two precious baby bunnies in the house, and, although they are safe in a secure cage, the cats are very much interested in them. Could Annabelle have worked herself in to that cage? Would I find my sweet little bunny on the other side of the door?

I opened the door and saw a fuzzy, brown little body at my feet…the exact size and coloring as the bunny. I cried, “NOOOO!” and reached down to touch the stiff little body….

….but it wasn’t soft like a bunny. I picked it up and my brain finally registered: Annabelle’s favorite teddy bear.

All that work-up–the adrenaline…the hot ears…the rushing blood…the pounding heart–for a lie I told myself. How often do I do this? How often do I expect the worse for no good reason? When a child has a stomach ache, why do I think, “Appendicitis?!”? It was a 6-hour tummy flu. When the water in the shower isn’t hot, why do I think, “Oh, no! The water heater has gone out!”? The pilot light needed to be re-lit.

When news articles say food prices will sky rocket, why do I envision us starving? When people talk about the recession, why do I worry about our (secure) jobs? We have lovely renters who have rented our house long term and are happy there, so why do I worry when people talk about the housing market?

Why indeed? Maybe I need to put on my glasses and see that it’s just a teddy bear.

Do you have a story to tell? Is there something that made your heart pound, your ears grow hot…only to find there was absolutely nothing to worry about? I’d love to hear about it! I think the more we face–and then talk about–our fears, the more able we are to rest in the knowledge that we are safe. So tell me!