BURNING WITH FEVER


As always, when Clarice spoke to the Lord, she tried to assume an external and internal posture of humility. Not to say that she succeeded on both fronts, but she felt pretty sure that at least He knew she tried.

During her regular evening monologues sent out to Him, she always knelt by her bed, knees tight together and toes overlapped. (Her friend Bitsy had called that “toe hugs” when they were girls.) Clasping her hands fervently together, Clarice leaned her elbows on the bedspread and spoke out loud. Dear Lord, she began as though beginning a letter.

And in a way that’s what it was. Passing along the news in her life and neighborhood, asking for special favors, and thanking Him for whatever grace He had bestowed on her lately. She always ended with, this is Clarice signing off, Lord, and then, Amen.

If she felt the urge to pray during the day she knelt facing her couch. At seventy-eight she was a little rickety on her pins and needed the couch cushions to lean into. She believed He’d understand.

Lately she had been praying for Him to wreck vengeance on the two women who had bought the house next door to hers. Every time she peered out of her windows at them – seemed they were entirely too friendly – always touching each other, patting a hand or arm, or actually hugging in the yard in broad daylight, the hussies! Front or back yard didn’t matter, they were shameless.

Now Clarice knew for a fact that the Lord did not approve of such goings on. He’d said so in black and white right there in her Bible. But He may have been too busy with more important matters to see what was going on right under His nose. So Clarice felt it was her Christian duty to keep Him updated.

This morning she’d just happened to be in her laundry room perched up on her little rolling stool and if she leaned over to the right she could see directly into their living room. They had been hugging on each other something fierce

After making sure that her eyes did not deceive her, she went right to her couch and knelt down to pass on this latest information. In the midst of her feverish description to Him of what she’d seen, and her demand for instant retribution, her power went off.

The big rotating fan she’d positioned behind the couch to cool her at her devotions stopped in mid-rotate. The window AC shut down with a clank.

Oh Lord, why me? Clarice cried out as she levered herself up off the floor. It must be 105 outside today and her little house would heat up so fast her old bones would surely melt right inside her parched skin.

Just then there was a loud knock at her front door and Clarice shuffled over and peeked out the little peep hole in the door. Why it was one of those scarlet women from next door. Maybe if she stayed real quiet and pretended she wasn’t home the woman would go away. But no, she kept knocking harder and harder on the door and shouting “Ma’am! Ma’am!” Like the furies of hell until Clarice couldn’t stand it anymore. So she whispered Lord be with me now, and opened the door.

And the woman said, “Hello ma’am, are you all right?” Clarice just nodded, at a complete loss for words.

“Name’s Mildred White, I’m your next door neighbor. Me and my cousin Maudie, (that’s her with the fire extinguisher) saw a bunch of blue sparks coming out of the side of your breaker box and got so worried about you. What with it being so hot today, and these old houses dry as tinder, a spark like that could’ve burned in a quick minute. The fire department will be here in a minute, but now I think we’re gonna need the power company too. Maudie has got a little carried away with that fire extinguisher on your breaker box.

Whew! It’s hot in here already, why don’t you come on over to our place and we can have some nice cold lemonade while we wait for some assistance. Hope you like lemonade, I made it fresh this morning.”

As Mildred cupped her elbow and helped her across the yard, Clarice looked up and silently, this time, said, thank you Lord.

And although there was not one cloud in the sky she distinctly heard a clap of thunder, as if in reply.