Bogey-men

"look over your shoulder and tell me what's coming
tell me what is the bogey that you're so afraid of
the eyes in the back of the head can persuade
that just for the moment
mercy has swayed"

from "look over your shoulder"
by mark heard

so, the other day the kids had a friend over and they were all outside playing. after awhile they came in and said, excitedly, "daddy! there's an animal in the field!"

"an animal? what kind of animal?"

"i don't know!" they screamed.

"but it's down by the trees. we saw it!" said joe. "yeah! he was right down there!" said carlo. "he was down by the tree. and he sat up and looked around just like this" said austin (looking like a prairie dog from mutual of omaha's wild kingdom).

"what did he look like, austin?" i asked. he looked kinda funny imitating it. soon all the kids were doing the audy prairie dog.

i stopped them by asking, again, "what kind of animal is it?" "we don't know, but he's down there".

so i put on my boots, coat and hat...contemplate going to get the shotgun (if it's a wounded or rabid animal...), get the dog's leash and head out with the kids to see what kind of animal is down in the brush inthe back of the yard.

from up on the driveway i see what they are looking at. it is dark...brown or probably even black. what can it be? it's not a skunk (thankfully). it could be a porcupine...maybe it's a beaver heading over to the stream. i doubt it's an otter...i wish bob was here, he knows this stuff. maybe it's the elusive fisher-cat (a weasel like mammal that is common up here in vermont, but still seldom seen).

before we start to get close, i try to get the dog's attention. i don't want him getting to whatever it is first. he won't come...altho, he doesn't pay any attention to the fisher-cat in the yard. i know it should have been a clue to the final outcome of the situation...but hey, i was caught up in the excitement of children's imagination. the kids caution me..."daddy, don't get too close!" and "here! take this", giving me a plastic toy sword. "i don't think i'll need that" i say, still thinking about going to get the shot gun.

i finally lure the dog close enough to me to get his leash on (some good it would do me if it was something...i don't think i could really hold gordon!). and we begin our advance toward the bob-cat.

the kids are all saying "did you see that?! it moved!". and "i wonder what it is?!" as we creep closer adn closer...wondering why the panther doesn't just run away. "it must be hurt", i think to myself. "hmmm...this might be dangerous." i say to the kids. "every body get behind me" (the great hunter)

you could feel the tension in the air, even tho there was quite a breeze (that's why gordon didn't know the bear is down there...the wind was blowing the other way and he couldn't smell it).

as we get closer...i begin to focus on the animal. as i do, my mind races about what our next move will be. put the dog in the house...get the gun...proceed with big sticks and plastic swords...

what a minute. the big animal that's moving around and picking it's head up and looking back and forth...?

it's an old log.

i knew it.

there's a ton of lessons in that story. i'll write about that later...

i have an ambush to plan with the twins. joe is coming home late from school and we have a handful of those popper things and we're pretending the power is out and when he comes into the music room, we'll toss the poppers at his feet!

oh, the imagination of children.

yeah that's it.