Charles Towne
By Charles Towne
Beaver - whether from the U.S., Canada, or wherever they may be found - have traditionally, (and unfortunately) been trapped for their fur. While it has been many been many years since my own (unfortunate) trapping days, those experiences yielded many adventures. However, the one I am about to recount did not happen to me personally, but it is an example of the hidden dangers that lurked in those days, always waiting to surprise the unaware or careless.
It was in the mid-1930’s that Uncle Milford Taylor was trapping beaver on the Tobacco River in Michigan. Traditionally, when trapping during the winter, a hole is cut in the ice and a long pole is jammed down and wedged into the muddy bottom. A notch is cut into the pole and a steel trap would be set on this notch waiting to catch any unwary beaver that happened by. On the day in question, Milford was checking his trapline when he came to one of these pole sets, but when he looked down to where the trap should have been, there was no trap. Thinking that a beaver had stepped into the trap and drowned, which was the plan, Milford removed his glove and, reaching down into the frigid water, was surprised to discover - not a beaver - but a trap waiting for his unsuspecting hand! The trap slammed shut on his hand, and no matter how hard he struggled, he could not free himself.
Time slowly, painfully passed.
As providence would have it, Milford’s nephew sensed that something was wrong and went in search of his uncle. And thankfully, he found him several miles from home lying on the ice unable to free himself from the trap. I'm happy to share that Milford made a full recovery from an incident that could have very well cost him his arm, if not his life.
I bet Milford thought twice next time before sticking his hand where it didn't belong. While the beavers no doubt celebrated that night, hopefully Milford learned a valuable lesson.
There are many 'traps' in life, aren’t there? Some catch us completely off-guard and for where we are in life, there's no way we could have seen it coming. Maybe it's a friend's betrayal, a financial investment-turned-scam, a moneypit renovation. You can fill in the blank. When we fall into those, the best thing is to pick ourselves up - or get some help to do so - and keep moving forward, chalking it up to a life lesson learned the hard way.
But there are other traps, like Milford's, that can be avoided, if we just stop long enough to reflect on potential consquences. Something Milford could have done and saved himself a lot of pain. For him it was his hand and arm that got hurt, but maybe for us the 'pausing to reflect' before plunging in could save us a relationship, a job, our money, health, or maybe even our own lives.
Thinking we know more, or that we're smarter than, or stronger than, or will be luckier than the potential danger before us is when, like what happened to Milford, things can get messy.
Thankfully, God is there with us and for us no matter what we get ourselves into, and will help us get off the ice as quickly as possible. However, how close we come to a lot of pain, or 'death', may be more up to us than we sometimes think.
So, beware of the traps. Make sure someone knows when you're out on the ice (metaphor-intended). Reflect before plunging in. And remember, no matter what, there is divine grace waiting to get you unstuck and back home to safety.
