Saturday, December 14, 2013

The Spider Slayer


There is nothing more horrifying than picking up your shampoo bottle during a shower and discovering a spider clinging to the wall with perhaps a sheer terror that the Great Allison found him out. If I were a spider, I would quake in fear as well having my hide-out destroyed in a matter of seconds by me. Well I think we can agree that the spider and I were both equally surprised.

But it's come to my attention since last night's duel-to-the-death that...I am the Spider Slayer. It's as if I am the only soul in the family burdened to slay the foul beasts within our home. I keep our territory safe. If it wasn't for me, our floors would be crawling with these eight-legged freaks of nature.

So I am here to bestow advice upon the weak, who have not the talent I possess in slaying spiders. Hear my words, O' weakling! For they might very well save your life one day.


Slaying spiders not only requires the focus of one's mind, but also the knowledge as to which weapon one must equip in any sort of terrain a sudden battle might break out. Here are your weapon options when suddenly coming face to face with a Bathroom Spider:

The Shampoo Bottle - the most common choice of weapon. Also great for hair.

The Towel - whip that demon back into Hades.

The Plunger - one of the most versatile weapons. Easy to slay spiders hiding behind the toilet fortress.

The Soap Dispenser - an easily breakable weapon, but used out of desperation. Can get the job done but continue with extreme caution.

When coming face to face with a common House Spider, the following weapons may be used as directed:

The Giant's Shoe - you know that one sibling who's feet are twice as large as yours? Go find that shoe. And use it. Use it with all your might, for this weapon is the mightiest weapon of all. It will never break, it will never betray your aim, it will never spare a spider's meager life. The Giant's Shoe is the Ultimate Weapon.

The Flip Flop - though a flip flop is not as large and mighty as the Giant's Shoe, it is as fast as lightning and gets the job done before you can even release a battle cry.

The Book of Never-Letting-Go - this weapon can only be found in households carrying bookcases. Though a book might be a bit difficult to wield, once it hits it's target at full force, it never has to hit it again.


These are some of the most common weapons a beginner spider slayer must learn to equip. Once the spider has fallen in battle and no longer can recoil itself from the corners of death and despair, now is the time to dispose of it's body. 

Rip out a giant's handful of kleenax/tissue, paper towels or most commonly a roll of toilet paper and grasp the black scribble left before you. A giant's handful will prevent you from even feeling that it is betwixt your fingers!

Next, cast it into the chasm for whence it came. Toss it into the fiery depths of Mordor. Dispose the demon into the toilet of Hades and flush it's sins out of your righteous sight. Then at last, you have successfully defeated your adversary. 


And that, my friends, is how to slay a spider properly. Perhaps one day you will be as great of a spider slayer as myself *chuckles*...but until then, I wish you a fine life!

A fine, fine life, indeed. One without spiders hiding behind your shampoo bottles.

Sunday, December 1, 2013

The Perfector


There's something that happens to the human soul when a family member dies. There is a part of you that has disappeared and you know it can never be replaced. But you have to do your best to somehow move on in this world that hasn't even stopped turning for your loss. Allow me to share my story, from the eyes of a distant niece.

On November 24th at 2:25am, my uncle Bernie passed away. He bravely fought cancer for two years and Jesus came to take him home earlier than any of us expected, but I suppose Jesus was too excited for such a jolly good man to be with him that he just couldn't wait any longer!

Uncle Bernie lived in Canada, where my brother and I lived for 8 months. We are insanely close to his sons, so we happened to come over every single Saturday, Monday or Tuesday, and Thursday--on average, 3 days a week, to hang out with them! We loved coming over, and my aunt would cook up that farmer sausage lasagna, which was probably a recipe she borrowed from the kitchens of heaven. We would eat with our cousins' whole family and so we got to know Uncle Bernie really well. One thing I will always remember about him was the way he let out a hefty chuckle that made his whole belly shake every time he told a joke! I am so thankful that God wanted us to live in Canada during that time, because then I wouldn't know just how great of an uncle I really had.

Because of his passing, my whole family quickly packed our bags and drove 25 hours straight through the night to be with his family and see him at the funeral. The drive was totally worth it, to be able to hug my cousins so tightly that it felt like I could hold some of their breaking pieces together. I could be there for them in person and do my best to make them smile and laugh at least for a moment.

On the day of his funeral, it happened to be Thanksgiving for the Americans. This holiday is a big deal for most of us, and so it was a very strange experience to have it in Canada at a funeral. But, as I sat there and listened to uncle Bernie's sons and daughters speak about him, I realized how thankful I really was to have known him. I cried so hard listening to their words and watching them naturally break down. And so Thanksgiving was painfully and yet preciously spent.

I will never forget the sight of the burial afterward. I stood there in a foot or two of the fluffiest snow I've ever seen. It glittered at me, and fell off the evergreen trees in slow motion. My breath flowed unevenly from my mouth as I cried watching my cousins and aunt take flowers from uncle Bernie's casket before lowering him down. I was allowed to take a flower of my own, so I mustered up my courage and stepped out to take the beautiful red flower that had my attention all afternoon long. Uncle Bernie gave me that flower, at least that's what I told myself, and I clung to it the rest of the night.

Being back home now and thinking over all the things (and yes, with the flower by my side) that have happened in only a week has brought back to my attention a powerful song that has helped me mull over the loss of my irreplaceable uncle. If you've ever lost a family member and are still hurting from it, pay attention to these lyrics because they can help put in perspective for you what death really is:


I'm still a young man so I think very little of death,
but who really does till it's coming for them?
And I know with each breath I come one closer,
but death is just a hook behind the door where I'll leave my dirty clothes

They may dump my body in the sea
or spread my ashes miles wide, but it won't matter,
all my parts will realign
They will rush to find each other when they hear their Lover's cry
and death will be abandoned when He comes back for His bride

Saints are never buried,
they are seeds planted who bring about a greater harvest
when they burst forth from the earth that needed their fruits,
but it could never hope to make enough room for their roots

Death is swallowed up,
it owns nothing in me

Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His faithful ones