'Well, He must, because He made mice too.'
'Then why make cats to kill them?'
'If mice didn't have natural enemies like cats and owls and coyotes,
they'd overrun the world.'
'Why would they overrun the world?'
'Because they give birth to litters, not single babies.'
'So?'
'So if they didn't have natural enemies to control their numbers,
there'd be a trillion billion mice eating up all the food in the world,
with nothing left for cats or us.'
'If God didn't want mice to overrun the world, why didn't He just make
them so they have single babies at a time?'
Adults always lost the Why Game, because eventually the train of
questions led to a dead-end track with no answer.
Heather said, 'You got me there, kiddo.'
'I think it's mean to make mice have a lot of babies and then make cats
to kill them.'
'You'll have to discuss that with God, I'm afraid.'
'You mean when I go to bed tonight and say my prayers?'
'Best time,' she said, freshening the coffee in her mug with the supply
in the thermos.
Toby said, 'I always ask Him questions, then I always fall asleep
before He answers me. Why does He let me fall asleep before I can get
the answer?'
'That's the way God works. He only talks to you in your sleep. If you
listen, then you wake up with the answer.'
She was proud of that one. She seemed to be holding her own.
Frowning, Toby said, 'But usually I still don't know the answer when I
wake up. Why don't I know it if He told me?'
Heather took a few sips of coffee to gain time. Then she said, 'Well,
see, God doesn't want to just give you all the answers. The reason
we're here on this world is to find the answers ourselves, to learn and
gain understanding by our own efforts.'
Good. Very good. She felt modestly exhilarated, as if she'd held on
longer than she'd any right to expect in a tennis match with a
world-class player.
Toby said, 'Mice aren't the only things get chased and killed. For
every animal, there's another animal wants to tear it to pieces.' He
glanced at the TV. 'See, there, like dogs want to murder cats.'
The cat that had been chasing the mouse was now, in turn, being pursued
by a fierce-looking bulldog in a spiked collar.
Looking at his mother again, Toby said, 'Why does every animal have
another animal that wants to kill it? Would cats overrun the world
without their natural enemies?'
The Why Game train had come to another dead end in the track. Oh, yes,
she could have discussed the concept of original sin, told him how the
world had been a serene realm of peace and plenty until Eve and Adam
had fallen from grace and let death into the world. But all of that
seemed to be heavy stuff for an eight-year-old. Besides, she wasn't
sure she believed any of it, though it was the explanation for evil,
