A Big Rat and Me

People! I have the weirdest things happen to me... I think me and my Auntie Linda should write a book (she has GREAT stories, too) about all of the strange things that have happened to each of us.
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My story begins as I am walking around my block last night listening to worship music on my iPod and praying. It was so nice that I just had to be outside! (It was probably around 10 PM.) After walking around the block once, I decided to go down to the area behind my house and sit by the pond. I like solitude, and sitting in the cool, slightly winterish breeze sounded pleasant.
As I sat down on the large roots of a willow tree and looked out over the pond, I pulled my baggy stocking cap down farther on my head. I looked up at the stars, thinking about creation, thinking about how much I loved being outside.
The song I was listening to faded out... I sat with my eyes closed, expecting to hear the wind and rustling leaves fill in the empty sound left behind. Instead, and to my utter delight, I heard a very distinct crunching. I opened my eyes, staring straight ahead, listening oh-so intently to the very loud sound to my left that was getting louder each second.
The hat on my head was baggy and almost completely blocked my peripheral vision. As the crunching grew louder and I realized that someone or something alive was coming toward me, I froze. I tried to act carefree by staring straight ahead... but really I was too scared to look at what was coming toward me.
The crunching slowed and I turned my head slightly so I could see out of my peripheral and get a glimpse of what was coming at me. It was not a person, it was an animal. From what I could tell it was a cat... a large cat. Not wanting to quickly look over and startle it, I relaxed a little, thinking maybe it was a lonely cat that might want to curl up next to me and keep me warm.
Then it got closer. This was NOT a cat. This was a large, ugly possum. It's pointy white nose found my left arm and started sniffing me viciously. I tried to look at it, but it was so close to me that the only was I could have seen it would have been to completely turn my head and look at it. Which would have been deadly.
For those of you who don't know, possums are extremely dangerous. They are very lonely, angry animals who are vicious when they attack. They aren't very fast runners but they are quicker than lighting when they are close. Possums are eagerly angered, have razor sharp teeth, and eat meat. Here's the problem:
I am not easily angered, I have dull, stupid teeth, and I like salad.
If I would have seen it was a possum from farther away, I would have gotten out of there. But now that it was here, at my side, sniffing its delicious new dinner, I couldn't move. That thing would have been on me like Fixident on Grandma's dentures. So I sat there, frozen.
In a couple more seconds, it finally turned and ran. I looked at it as it waddled away and sighed. I slowly and quietly (I was as quiet as I could be on a tree root with dead leaves sticks other loud crunchy items that nature discards) ran for me life.

Whew! That was a close one!