Faith Lynella
A friend of mine had an unused garage area, filled with haphazard, accumulated junk. She knew it needed cleaning out, but it’s hard to get around to tackling such long-neglected projects. Only after the job was nearly done did she discover the hidden-away and unsuspected layer of raccoon poop. The critters were coming inside to do their business. And it was yucky indeed!
Raccoon Poop is not just another mess to clean up. It deserves its own term as a class of overlooked and long-avoided concerns that need to be dealt with—sooner or later. Usually later.
- It is only found after other efforts to fix, or clean up, or eliminate a situation are done; it couldn’t be seen until then
- It is behind or underneath what you expected—or were braced for
- It is yuckier than just cleaning out the corners and cobwebs; it’s not on the surface
- Its presence comes as a surprise—even though it has been building up for a long time; it’s often accumulated because it has been unconsciously avoided all along
- It is discovered (if at all) late in a cycle or project, but its presence has been throwing off your center of gravity for a long time; you couldn’t read the signals accurately
- Raccoon Poop is responsible for much of your habitual inertia and dead ends
- It won’t go away of its own accord; it just keeps building up until dealt with; taking on Raccoon Poop is very liberating
- Raccoon Poop can show up in your life in mental, emotional, and physical ways—that influence your relationships and activities in countless ways
- Raccoon Poop blocks closure or moving on; but cleaning it means it won’t suck up your energy any more
- You’ve probably blamed someone or something else for the harm being done by all that Raccoon Poop; forgive it/them and yourself
- Make whatever changes are required to stop Raccoon Poop from coming back; watch for signs of it
NOTE: Once the Raccoon Poop was gone, my friend failed to secure her reclaimed space. A skunk moved in and is unwilling to leave. Unless you’re prepared to make overdue changes in your life, something worse than Raccoon Poop could take up residence. Vigilance is advised.
*This is a very recent BonBon. It has not previously been published, but will be included in the next volume of BonBons.