Kenzi's Phobia by Robin Densmore Fuson

                                              

Do you have or know someone with a Phobia?

Kenzi is a Belgian Malinois. They can be trained to be police dogs. Belgian’s have sleek reddish-brown fur with a black muzzle and ears. Sometimes, their tails are dark. Her cousin, the German shepherd, is a bit larger breed. Our Kenzi is smart, obedient, easy to train, and spoiled. She thinks she is a lap dog and I gladly accommodate her. 

She wouldn’t’ve made the rank of a police dog. She has a weird phobia. She is afraid of hard surface floors that reflect light. If there is a shadow, she acts as if she will fall through it. She is paralyzed with fear.

She balks. Gets on her belly and her ears go back. If I command her to go forth, she scrambles. Her feet go every which way except to hold her up with dignity. A piece of a rug is her solid rock in an ocean of distorted reality and she swims to the rug, panting.

We have lived in our house for two years. She still gives an area in our house with a hard reflective surface, a wide berth. At my parent’s home, she hates to travel across the dining and kitchen Pergo floors to her water and food dishes. From carpet to rug, she claws her way, running over anyone in her path. It’s comical but sad.

I have a fear of spiders, roaches, rodents, and snakes. Did I say, I live in FLORIDA?

We have an exterminator that regularly does her thing to keep the crawly monsters away. On occasion, one appears. I holler, “Monster!” My faithful honey gets on his white steed and gallops to my rescue to take care of the tiny ferocious beast.

When he isn’t there, it isn’t pretty. I broke out in a sweat one evening when Jimmy wasn’t home. A brown beast crept across the floor. I said a fast prayer, “Help me Lord! Help me be fast.” I put a trash can on it, hoping it got squished, trapped, and die. Success! Jimmy arrived and took care of the problem.

Another time, in the middle of the night, one came near my brave Kenzi, who got off her bed and got my attention. I keep shoes by the bed. Sweating, praying, and shaking, I grabbed my shoe, and slapped it to death. After the deed, I ran and got the vacuum. I let Jimmy sleep through the problem. Yay, me! Yay, God!

Although afraid, I overcame my fear enough to take care of the problem. Kenzi doesn’t have the tools needed to take care of her phobia. She doesn’t pray. She doesn’t read the Bible. She can’t reason through the situation. She can’t realize that I’m standing on the floor just fine. That others walk across the floor all day.

I know that I am larger and stronger than the roach. I know that I could muster up the necessary nerve to take care of the problem. The alternative is way worse. I cannot abide them in my house.

Phobias are real. They range from Kenzi’s and mine to claustrophobia. There are fears of heights, germs, crowds, water, loneliness, financial doom, and hundreds more, even death.

The issue is, how do we manage our fears? The Bible says, Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand. (Isaiah 41:10 nlt)

The Lord is waiting to help you. All you need to do is ask and trust. Take a deep breath, reason it out, and pray.