Have you ever noticed that when you don’t deal with what’s right in front of you, because you don’t know how, it doesn’t go away but instead gets in your way? It grows bigger. And that’s what this dead mouse story is about.

The other day I stepped outside the door and there it was, a dead mouse—it was actually a half-eaten, decapitated dead mouse—at the bottom of the stairs. It must have been a gift from one of our cats.

Since Syb, my husband, who deals with all of these kinds of tragedies in our life, was in Europe, we just left it there. The dead mouse stayed untouched that day, and the next day, and the day after that. And five days later it was still there, lying on its back and looking really miserable.

It was amazing to see how we avoided dealing with the dead mouse by adjusting our skills to jump, hop, or step over him in all different kinds of shoes: high heels, snow boots, rain boots, sneakers, you name it. It was ridiculous.

Of course my heart ached, and my guilt grew larger with each of the countless trips in and out the house. But no action was taken, and the mouse became a monster.

Until one day it hit me. He had effectively and blatantly shown us how easily we can turn our heads, step over an issue, and look the other way when we don’t know how to deal with something right in front of us. He showed us how we can play cat and mouse in our minds and lose in the end.

It took the poor mouse a week to show us why he was a gift. His ignored dead body was a metaphor for all of the other “dead mice” we need to clean up in our life in order to create clarity and move forward.

Do you have an issue that you’re avoiding right now because you don’t know how to deal with it? Is there a habit that's in your way? Don’t wait until your “dead mouse” becomes a monster. Bury it once and for all, or revive it if it’s an issue you’d like to keep alive.

Needless to say, the dead mouse deserves our apology for not picking him up sooner. And bless his little sacred Soul for teaching us a life-changing lesson!