Cockroach Encounter

I have heard tell of massive flying cockroaches that reside here in Houston. I have been fortunate enough not to meet one of these legendary beasts in my first few weeks living here. However, I have had my first cockroach (the normal kind) encounter.

It happened one weekday morning while Luke and I were trying to keep ourselves busy in the house hiding from the heat. Luke and I went upstairs so that I could brush my teeth, I think. I set him down on the floor by the foot of our bed and walked into the adjoining bathroom.

Earlier that day, I had noticed a small brown oval-shaped form in the carpet near the foot of our bed, but Luke had been eating a lot of raisins lately, so I figured it was just an over-sized raisin and I would get it later. Well, I only had my back turned to Luke for about two seconds before he noticed the "big raisin" and I turned around just in time to witness a horrifying scene: Luke, sitting cross-legged in front of the mystery object, hands in his lap, folding in half at the waist, mouth gaping and perfectly alined to devour what I suddenly realized was a dead cockroach! The scene played out in slow motion, from the moment I noticed the tiny legs and antennae bringing on a wave of pure horror, to the moment I realized I wouldn't have time to reach Luke before he would complete his nose dive and gobble the roach in a single bite. Desperately, I lunged toward him screaming, "No! No! No! No! No!" It worked! Luke stopped mid-dive, looked at me, and burst into tears. I may have startled him, but at least I prevented my boy from eating a cockroach. He'll thank me later.