The Parable of the Mosquito Bite

"Happiness is having a scratch for every itch."

-Ogden Nash

Probably the hardest thing we've had to deal with here on Roatan is the plethora of Mosquitoes and "Sand Fleas".  Because this is a tropical island and lush with green jungle, when it is the wet season the bugs are a plenty.   We've learned a lot about them in the 3 weeks we've been here, and it has caused me to reflect on life and the parallels between these pesky little critters and something a little more serious...addiction.

Now before I share this parable, may I say that this is not a confession or a bearing of my soul regarding any personal struggles.  It is simply one of those "A-ha" moments that one has while contemplating things of the spirit.

As I said, the hardest thing we've encountered during our time here is not so much the Mosquitoes or Sand Fleas themselves, but the bites and the itch that they leave behind.  I had read about them before coming down, knew they existed, but probably like most people, I didn't pay enough attention or properly prepare myself until it was too late.

These almost invisible critters hang around near the sand and near the floor at your feet at dawn, dusk and before and after a rain.  You hardly notice them, and don't even feel the bite.  And then, the next morning, you wake up and look like this:

And that my friends, is when the fun begins...because for most people (Stephanie & Ethan don't seem to get "the itch"), what starts out as a simple touch to the afflicted area and an "Oh I have a bite" realization...then becomes a simple itch.  Nothing big, just a small itch.  So you do what comes naturally to your body's nerve sensors communicating the itch to you....you scratch it.  No big deal.  But now you are being drawn in because as soon as you do that, you realize it just wan't enough, and so you sign up for a full, hard, complete scratching of the whole area.  As soon as you stop, the affected area screams out for more relief and so you start scratching again...and harder this time, convinced that this time will make it go away.  If you are not careful, you begin to open the areas of the bites, thus causing bleeding, and then scabbing, and possible scarring.  You would think that once you get to the point where you're bleeding with open wounds on your legs that surely the itching would stop...but it doesn't.

The best way to get it to stop itching is to...simply...stop...scratching.  There are topical ointments you can use to alleviate it somewhat, and that helps, but ultimately you must come to the conclusion that you must leave it alone, pay no attention to it, and occupy yourself with something else in order to forget about it.

So here comes the parallel.  How often do we go about our lives, knowing there are things hovering around us daily that may become harmful to us or potentially addictive?  Food, Facebook, video games, pornography, alcohol, drugs...name your personal poison.

There are many things we can do to protect ourselves everyday from the potential "Bugbites" that then cause the incessant itching, such as surrounding yourself with positive habits, prayer, scripture study, service, church attendance, exercise and good friends.  The scriptures refer to it as "Putting on the Whole Armor of God" in order to protect ourselves from the fiery darts of the adversary.  (Ephesians 6:11-18)

In the case of the mosquitoes, it is a regimented habit of applying insect repellent morning, day, and night...every day.  You must be consistent.   In the case of addiction, it is all the things mentioned above.  Consistency is also the key to life.

But once bitten, which we all are at some point or another, the "sting" of the sin persists.  We can immediately apply ointment to it to relieve that sting; we can "repent" of our wrongdoing or neglect and apply the healing ointment of the Atonement of the Savior Jesus Christ.  But if we don't, and we let the sting fester, it becomes an itch.  We may try to alleviate that on our own by scratching it, knowing that it...feels...so...good to scratch, and it does bring momentary and even pleasurable relief. But as soon as you stop scratching, it returns, only more amplified and more intense in it's desire for relief.  The more we scratch, the more it itches, until we're left clawing at our own flesh in desperate search of relief.  Only the healing balm of the Savior will bring true relief, and then a practiced discipline of resisting the urge to scratch it.  Sure, once bitten, we may recognize that the bite exists and have the occasional desire to scratch it, but the more we resist that temptation and instead find other things to occupy our lives, the more we forget about it, and the eventual healing occurs.