Things That Go Bump in the Night

Remember the saying- "things that go bump in the night" referring to scary things from horror movies? Well, I got my first real "bump in the dark" a couple of nights ago. Yes, it was scary, but more than that, it hurt. I always think there is a good life lesson to be learned when things like this happen. It seems everything in our lives is for a purpose, and this was no exception.
It was late... the house was very quiet. I crept upstairs to get ready for bed, being careful not to make too much noise, as the rest of my household was already slumbering. I quietly did my nighttime routine, and was ready to pop into bed for a much needed night of sleep.
When I emerged from our bathroom, it was pitch black. I took calculated steps towards my bed- one, two three... I bent down to place my shoes on the ground. The next thing I knew, as my shoes slipped from my hand in swift surprise was a huge BUMP!
Now this was not the type of bump that makes the hair on the back of your neck stand up in eerie response of the unknown. Instead it was a painful impact to my right eye. My face had "bumped" the bed footpost with full force, simply because I never saw it coming. Hence, the pitchdark condition of our bedroom.
I actually saw stars, then the unwelcome wetness of something sticky on my upper right eye area. No, it wasn't the Blob from the 60's horror movie. Instead, as I suspected and soon confirmed, it was blood. I quickly grabbed some Kleenex and applied pressure. After a minute of gathering up my courage, I uncovered my eye, and to my horror, saw it was an inch-long gash over my eyebrow area. I had to think quickly.
My decision was to drive myself to the emergency room at our local hospital. My husband stirred a bit, as I quietly got dressed, so I simply said, "Good Night." His answer was appropriate, and a little funny, now that I think about it. He replied, "Good Night- you must mean Good-Bye". Pretty insightful, I thought.
I spent the next hour and a half at the mostly empty hospital emergency room. I thought this was interesting because it was Mothers' Day. Perhaps family members either don't get sick or hurt on Mothers' Day, or they courteously wait until the next day to notify their moms of their ailments. The hospital staff was nice, asking me firmly how I had gotten the gash. (I think that this is a question asked to all women when they walk in with a face wound.) I told them my story, and I think they believed me. If they didn't, they didn't give it away in their facial expression. I am thankful that the care I received didn't include stitches. Instead, my gash was 'superglued'. No pain injection was needed, and I soon found myself on my way home around 1:20 a.m.
Later that morning, I woke up with a blood red puffy right eye. I carefully put an icepack on it, and doubled up on eyeshadow. I guess I underestimated my make-up techniques, for none of my family members even noticed the wound.
Life lesson to be learned from this experience: NEVER go into a dark room. This reminds me of unknown or "dark situations". These are situations where we speak before we know all the facts, or we rush into dilemmas in our lives where emotions mask the facts.
The same result will occur as it did to me with my experience with the bedpost --we will be stopped flat in our tracks with the painful impact of the hidden dangers. This includes, but is not limited to; harsh words, hurt feelings, and even physical danger, if you're dealing with an angry-beyond-belief individual. You'll never see it coming until you look in the mirror, and you fervently wish you had been more careful.
Instead, we should pray that God will make the light to expose the dangers that lie directly in front of us, and protect us, even when we can't "see" them.