My knowledge of science, or shall I say lack of knowledge, prompted me to yell out in a meeting when I looked out a glass door and found a cute little creature staring at me. I was sitting with a group of adults and was probably the oldest person in the room. I was truly delighted to see the animal and felt that everyone else would want to see him too. Luckily, the meeting hadn't officially started, but I immediately felt like an unruly third grader.
I wasn't even sure what it was. I've never come face to face with a possum before. My excitement wasn't shared by the rest of the group. They called the creature nasty and not so cute. The person in charge contacted maintenance to come and remove the unwanted possum from the grounds.
Of course, I would have reacted differently if I had been outside without a protective barrier. The possum's tail must have been about two feet long and looked a lot like a rat's tail. Although this one looked sweet to me, it probably had some pretty sharp teeth and a mean bite to match.
The whole experience reminds me of the spontaneous enthusiasm of small children. They hold nothing back and don't worry about how others might perceive their reactions. I also thought about how it feels to not fit in and be the one looking in from the outside. The poor possum was probably as shocked and surprised as I was. At least he didn't embarrass himself in front of his peers.
There's a writing prompt in there someplace.:)
