The North American common porcupine is a member of the rodent family that has around 30,000 quills attached to it body. Each quill can be driven into an enemy, and the enemy’s body heat will cause the microscopic barb to expand and become more firmly embedded. The wounds can fester; the more dangerous one, affecting vital organs can be fatal… Notice that it’s hard to find a porcupine stuffed animal!
As a rule, porcupines have two methods for handling relationships: withdrawal and attack. They either head for a tree or stick out their quills. They are generally solitary animals…
Porcupines don’t always want to be alone. In late autumn, a young porcupine’s thoughts turn to love. But love turns out to be a risky business when you’re a porcupine. Females are open to dinner and a movie only once a year; the window of opportunity closes quickly. And a girl porcupine’s “no” is the most widely respected turndown in all the animal kingdom.
This is the Porcupine’s Dilemma: How do you get close without getting hurt?
How do we get close without getting hurt? We know that we have our human quills that prevent us from getting close to each other and keep us apart. But coming to Yosemite is one of the many ways that we learn to be in relationship with each other. What have we done to be less a porcupine and more like the children of God…
Let us pray.