“Bushel of wheat, bushel of rye; if you’re not ready, holler out ‘I.’” That was the final warning when we played Hide-n-Seek as I was growing up. It was the preliminary notice that the Seeker was about to come looking for the Hiders.

Sometimes Paul and I would play that game with just the two of us up in the hayloft and around the barn. Sometimes, there would be twenty of us playing, following a 4-H hayride over to the Jeff Davis Memorial at Fairview or after a church potluck or chili supper at our house. Every now and then, if the grownups stood around a while visiting after church on a summer evening, we’d play while the locusts and crickets were practicing their cacophonies.

It was fun and exciting. First, there was the challenge of finding a hiding spot and being able to stay quiet and still until whoever was It had passed by. Sometimes, I could make it home safe without being seen. There was the little bit of adrenalin rush when I was spotted and the sharp crunch of gravel underfoot as I raced the Seeker to the designated “Home Free” spot. I didn’t always win but it was always fun.

Of course, with the game, you always knew that your vulnerability began with that final chant of “Ready or not, here I come.”

I’ve learned that life doesn’t always play by those rules. Sometimes, the “Gotchas!” can be an absolute surprise and there’s no second chance to give you more time. Sooner or later, we have to step out of the shadows. And I have learned to hold hands with him who is greater than the Darkness.

H. Arnett

1/18/11