Why I Hate the Fall

I get hot easily.  I don't mean angry, I mean I bodily get hot, very easily.  It could be 70 outside and I would be sweating, not copiously, but sweating none the less.  I know this isn't a particularly lovely image, but it is the truth.  Because I get hot easily, I prefer cooler temperatures.  (There are photos from our honeymoon with my wife wearing two shirts, a jacket with a hood over her head, another jacket on top of that, a scarf, a knit hat over her head, gloves on her hands, standing with her arms crossed while she shivered as we passed through Glacier Bay.  I, on the other hand, was wearing a t-shirt.  And I was comfortable.)

For someone who gets hot easily and who enjoys cold weather, you would think I would like the fall.  And you would be correct.  I like the fall, as the leaves change, the weather gets cooler, and the crisp mornings and evenings are wonderful for good long walks.

So, why did I title this, "Why I Hate the Fall"?  I used that title because I'm referring to fall of humanity.  After we sinned, when we were cast out of the Garden of Eden, we were also cursed.  But, it wasn't just humanity that was cursed, it was all of creation.  Hence, Paul tells us that all of creation groans, in labor pains, waiting for redemption.  This world isn't as it is supposed to be, its broken. (Romans 8:18-27)

The fact of the fallen state of the world was brought to my attention recently as I had a run in with what I believe has to be one of the most obvious reminders of the reality of the Fall that God created.  This particular reminder is persistent, I must admit.  It isn't a disease, but it lasts for as long as 4 weeks.  It also serves as a constant reminder, because as long as it lasts, you will constantly deal with pain and itching, enough so that even sleeping is affected.  I speak, of course, of poison ivy.

I have done a lot of research on poison ivy.  Allow me to regale you with the information I have come across:  The irritant that makes poison ivy so annoying is called urushiol, (You-ROO-she-ohl) it is an oil that is found on and in every part of the plant.  Because it is an oil is does not dry up, even if the plant is killed it can linger for as long as a year.  Oh, and the properties of an oil are just beginning.

As an oil urushiol suspends in water, so if you wash your hands the oil does not necessarily come off, instead you can transfer it to whatever you use to dry your hands, and then transfer it from that to other parts of your body.  (Washing clothes exposed is okay though, the oil suspends in the water and doesn't transfer to other items, it drains out with the water.)  It also vaporizes when burned, so if you burn some poison ivy the oil will vaporize with the smoke and cover whatever the smoke comes into contact with, including your lungs.  The oil can also last on any object it comes into contact with, again, for up to a year.  And, the method used for cleansing the urushiol can leave you even more susceptible if you come back into contact with it within the next few hours.  Oh, and to make things even more interesting, the normal method of washing your hands, using hot water and scrubbing for several seconds, can actually cause the oil to sink further into your skin as it opens your pours.

Here's where things get really fun: urushiol cannot be washed out of your skin once it has bound itself into your skin.  If you realize you have been exposed you basically have a max of six hours to try and wash the oil out.  Washing the oil out can be done with strong soap and hot water (but remember, done wrongly that could only make the resulting rash worse!) but it is most commonly recommended to use rubbing alcohol or something else that can dissolve the oil (oil and water don't mix, basic cooking and chemistry rules).  If, for whatever reason, you fail to get your skin cleaned in time (realistically you want to do it within 30 minutes) then the urushiol actually binds with the proteins in your skin.  That's right, once it is in you it cannot be removed, it cannot be treated with anti-venoms, and the best you can hope for is a treatment that will make you more comfortable.

And, if you think you're one of those who is immune, be aware: poison ivy gives you at least one free pass.  Because of the way poison ivy works you will not break out with a rash after your first exposure.  You may think you are totally immune to it.  Even on the second, third, etc. exposure, you may have no reaction.  75% of people (estimated) do react though, and just because you didn't react this time doesn't mean you won't react next time.  Something about the chemical properties of urushiol cause it to not aggravate people initially, our bodies have to get sensitized to it.  You also may not even realize you have urushiol on your hands as you spread it, because the rashes do not break out on your palms (the proteins the urushiol binds with are too think on your palms) but it will break out every where you touch with your palms.  (I have a spot on my left arm where I have four pretty definite finger marks from where I apparently put my right hand on my left arm.)

Misery loves company.  Hopefully in describing what poison ivy does I have you wincing just a little with me at how annoying it is.  If you aren't there yet let me inform you of one more thing: the most common areas for rashes are the face and the groin.  Yes, that's right, the two most sensitive areas on any body are the most common areas for the rash to break out, because those are the areas we tend to touch for personal hygiene reasons.  Now, if you will, commiserate with me and those many people who are dealing with rashes.  (Lest you think I have given you too much information I will be forthcoming: my rashes are just on my right wrist and hand and my left arm where I apparently touched myself, maybe to scratch.)

There is more I could tell you, about weeping wounds, potential for blood disease, infection, boils, blisters, pimples, etc.  But, isn't it enough to note that this particular weed is in 48 of the 50 United States?  Poison ivy is most common in the east, but it exists in all 48 of the continental United States.  Poison oak and sumac, which are just as annoying, and I've been told may be even worse, are a bit rarer.  People even imported poison ivy to Europe!  (Knowingly, I might add.)

So, poison ivy has become the newest reason I hate the fall.  Poison ivy serves as a perfect example, in my opinion, of why anyone who looks at the world should recognize that it isn't as it should be.  After all, most animals are unaffected by urushiol (it simply gets on their fir) so it isn't like the plant enjoys any great natural protection from animals, except humans.  The seeds of the plant, which also have urushiol, are even used as food by some animals.  Poison ivy is only a nuisance to humans, therefore it reminds me that this world is not really my home.

Why would anything in my home be designed particularly as a weapon to be used against me?  No, this is not the home for which I long.  That home, to be with Christ eternally, will not have poison ivy.  Or, if it does, the urushiol will no longer bind with my skin and cause me to break out in a blistering rash.  Of this I am convinced: God will not have poison ivy rashes in heaven.  It would break his promise that we would never again weep.  I'm looking forward to that.

Rejoice, dear Christian, as you think that the Fall which taints everything in this world will one day be reversed.  As creation cries out, as though in birth pangs, it will one day deliver.  God will bring forth a new heaven and a new earth.  If it were not for that promise, why should we bother to endure things like poison ivy, broken bones, or even the common cold?  But, the joy that awaits us is such that Paul says our current sufferings aren't even worth comparing to it.  Therefore, enduring what we do now for sake of the home we anticipate, all these things will be as nothing, but the time we have may serve to glorify God as are transformed to the image of his Son, and seek to gather more disciples, not to ourselves, but to him, who is all in all.  Praise our God, for his promises are great, even in the midst of discomfort and suffering.