The Second Viper

On Friday evening, I made a simple meal of spaghetti noodles with tomatoes and Parmesan cheese. Philip doesn't particularly care for this meal, so he ran out to get some street food. While he was gone, I stepped outside to pick up a few sticks and debris scattered in the driveway. I glanced over at a drainage hole right next to me and noticed a bright green snake eying me! He was not poised to strike; he was just lazily draped over the side of the whole with his head slightly raised. Thankfully, the kids were all in the house getting ready to eat. I hurried into the house myself and shouted out for everyone to stay inside. Then I called Philip to let him know to be careful when he came home.

I watched the snake from the house in case he decided to switch locations. He did not move the whole time. When Philip arrived home, he immediately picked up a hoe and shovel. I let the kids start eating supper because they were getting antsy. I wanted to watch Philip but found that I couldn't quite. So I just helped serve up the food and prayed and prayed. I heard the clang of metal hitting the hard ground and then a second clang. Then I heard rustling around and more clangs. Finally, I looked out the window. Philip had swung the hoe and instead of hitting the snake had scooped it up slightly. Yikes! Then he had dropped the hoe and clipped the end of the snake's tail with the shovel as it slid away.

Philip searched all around in the brush around the water tank in the failing light with his flashlight and a long bamboo pole. The snake had gotten away. I was thankful that Philip was ok, but he said he would rather have gotten bitten if it meant he could have killed the snake. The next day, Philip went through all the bushes around our house to see if he could rustle the snake out. He wanted to make sure that the girls wouldn't startle it with their play. So maybe the snake left for safer places; most Thai will not kill snakes, even poisonous ones. Maybe it's still in our yard. We reminded the girls what to do if they see a snake - run in the house and yell to Mommy and/or Daddy "Snake!" I pray daily for my children's safety. Only God can protect them. So far all snakes have been discovered by Philip or me, so I believe God is keeping them safe.

Now if anyone sees a viper with a snippet of tail missing around our neighborhood, let us know!