“A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches.” — Proverbs 22:1
When I was in ninth grade, I went to a boarding school way out in the hills of Tennessee called Laurelbrook Academy. It wasn’t like most schools. Along with classes, every student had a job to do — some worked in the kitchen, some on the farm, and others helped keep the place running in a hundred little ways.
One Friday evening after work, the air was cool and quiet. I was walking back to the dorm when a smell floated across campus — warm, sweet, and delicious. I knew that smell anywhere. Cinnamon rolls!
Every Friday night the kitchen baked them for Sabbath breakfast, and the scent filled the whole campus like a promise. The rolls were big and soft and covered with shiny glaze. And right then, my stomach started to growl.
I thought, Why wait until morning? I’ll just sneak one little roll.
The cafeteria and the little store next to it were locked up for the night, but I noticed a small vent window above the door. It looked just big enough. I climbed up, slid the window open, and squeezed through like a raccoon after a cookie.
My feet had barely touched the floor when I heard something move in the dark. A soft shuffle… then another. I froze. My eyes adjusted to the shadows, and that’s when I saw it — a white stripe glowing faintly in the corner.
A skunk!
Before I could even breathe, PFFFFFFTTT! — he sprayed! It hit me full in the face. My eyes burned, my nose screamed, and my clothes smelled so bad even the crickets moved away.
I scrambled back out the window as fast as I could, gasping for air. But it was too late. The smell followed me everywhere. Within minutes the whole campus knew — and by the next morning, so did everyone else!
That night I learned something important:
Sometimes when you sneak after something sweet,
you end up smelling like a skunk.