Hopelessly Tangled

My sister-in-law texted me to let me know she’d seen a big non-venomous snake lying near some moss I often admire on my daily walks. She wanted to give me a head’s up so that I wouldn’t be startled if I happened upon it. My husband, Russ, and I decided to go check it out. 

At first glance, the snake looked like he was just lying under a bush but then we realized he was tangled in some netting. Hopelessly tangled! Russ began trying to pull the netting away from him, but it was no use. We needed scissors. I went back to the house to get some but they proved inadequate too. We needed really tiny scissors that could make precise and careful cuts. Suddenly I remembered—I had just the thing in my studio! I’d bought them a few years ago when I was working with some gold leaf for a painting project. I tossed them into a knitting basket and ran back down the street where my husband was sitting with our friend, the weary, non-venomous snake. It turned out the snake was trapped in 6 different places, so it took a while to cut him free. My hands shook as I feared that at any moment I might accidentally hurt him. The netting was tangled so tightly!  The snake never moved to strike. He was very still but kept his head turned, watching us as we worked. 

When I cut that last bit of netting, I felt a rush of relief. The snake moved tentatively and Russ carefully lifted him and carried him farther into the forest, away from the shrubs. 

Lots of thoughts swirled in my mind. I thought generally of fairytales, and specifically of my book Lucilla and the Snarly Skein, where Lucilla gets hopelessly tangled in a knot of yarn and has to be set free by Inkling, the king of the stars. And I thought of times I’ve desperately needed help and received it. It can feel humiliating to need help. To be stuck or to feel powerless in some way. But God loves to set us free. One of my favorite verses is Psalm 118:5. It says, “I called on the Lord in my distress; the Lord answered me and set me in a broad place.” 

God alone has the power to do this. And He delights in doing it! 

It felt like such a privilege to get to help that snake today. I named him Rilian, after the prince in the book, The Silver Chair because he was bound by an enchantment and had to be set free. He could have never succeeded on his own. 

I hope to see Rilian again someday, and maybe I will. 

But I will always appreciate a head’s up first!

Blessings to you all,

~Amy