When I was a child, in a family of five children, Christmas Eve was the most difficult night to go to sleep. My mother would not do anything about Santa till we were sleeping soundly. On occasion when she'd come in, we'd do what she called "playing 'possum." The amazing thing is that she could tell whether we were asleep. It was usually a source of giggles for the three little girls cuddled under the quilts. I was an adult before I realized what that expression meant. When I found this tiny opossum in the woods, he stopped frozen in fear. As you can tell, though his eyes were open, he blended in with his environment. I almost stepped on him. Such is the wonder of nature and Mothers. Yesterday was the 11th anniversary of my mother's death, so it is befitting to remember her today with this photograph. Copyright 2007 Dell Belew