To Flee or Not to Flee--That is the Question

Here he is—that wild-eyed paint we call Copper Cash. He's our 10-year-old Tobiano paint gelding showing off his latest grassy sandwich. . He's quite a beauty and, of all my horses, probably the most comical. At 16 hands, he's a hefty boy with a long black and white mane and tail.

As is my daily habit right now, I like to spend time with all three horses, many times leading them around to graze. It's always interesting watching their individual eating habits. My older mare, Smokey, likes to nibble at small blades of grass scattered in sparsely grown areas.

Mojave, our black and white paint (big brother to Cash) delves into the larger stands of grass along the hillsides—places where he can tear off long clumps of tender greens. And very rarely is he distracted from his grazing—easy going is his middle name.

What is Cash's favorite salad? Unbelievably, he likes crabgrass. And, he especially likes to burrow under bushes and smaller trees to find tender morsels tucked away in the shade. As he roots around under the branches he invariably gets bonked on the head or rump with the offending twigs and then it's "off to the races" as the flight instinct kicks into gear.

It's fun to watch their inquisitive noses skirt the ground seeking out the best greens while their tender lips brush the undesirables out of the way so they can pluck the best grasses from the ground. Sometimes you'll see a darting eye looking for the next patch. It seems they are always preparing themselves, ears flicking back and forth, eyes alert. As flight animals, their instinct is self-preservation so they are always ready at a moment's notice to flee danger.

While I don't believe we humans were meant to flee when life gets hard, this natural instinct does make me think about how I approach situations. Am I prepared when times do get tough or I see danger lurking? And, then, how should I react to it? Sometimes I know I need to stand firm and fight. While at other times, when confronted with something evil, I know instinctively that I must flee.

"Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls about like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. But resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished by your brethren who are in the world." (I Peter 5:8-9 NASB)