some time around seven the sweetie asked me if i was hungry. i was and i said so, thinking he'd head into the kitchen and start something on the stove, maybe burritos. instead he put on his shoes and headed to the car. now, i am like most dogs. i love a car ride. the perfect combination of soothing and adventurous. so we hopped in the car and turned toward roxbury and food. we passed a tall farmer walking across a stubble field, barn behind him, slow beagle loping alongside him. on past them a deer stood absolutely still on a hillside, feet from wooded land, ear flicking. we followed the river between mountains catching the last bits of orange from the sky.
and there, slapped right up along the side of a whole field on the side of a hill, were 41 sleek, shiny blue turkeys. if you've been here before, you know how i feel about the turkeys on the loose. if not, i know what you're thinking. you're ignoring what i'm saying and thinking up 41 fat, brown ugly birds too stupid to do anything but stand around. listen, erase all those memories you have of tracing your hand and adding a beak. forget the centerpieces and orange and brown candles. get rid of all the pipe cleaner turkeys and the cutout images in every fall classroom you've ever walked into. i mean it. quit thinking brown.
now, think of looking into a deep well. that's the color of these turkeys. think about the color of the sky when the stars first get themselves all sparkling. think lean. think elegant. think peacock. that's right. peacock. that's what these turkeys look like. and while we were rolling by, looking for food, hoping for a little something good, one of those deep well, peacock-proud turkeys stood his body up straight and fanned his feathers out behind him like he was getting ready to say something. and although i've seen nothing but this pose in all those stupid fatbrown turkey pictures, i almost didn't recognize it. because i have never, not even once, seen a real live free turkey do that. and it was so pretty i think i might have forgotten to breathe a few seconds.
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2 comments:
Baxter and I saw a turkey on our walk a few days back. It ran out of the woods and onto the path about 30 yards away, stopped, looked at us, then turned and ran back into the woods. Baxter really wanted to bite that guy, but he was gone when we got up there.
Also, one time a turkey tried to attack Jim and Baxter on their walk. There were babies involved. On the turkey side.
Turkeys are funny. Jim can do a passable turkey call.
ooooh! i'll bet baby turkeys are awesome to look at. i'll bet their eyes and beaks are MONSTROUS!
make jim record himself being a turkey. i'll put it on the blog. if you have one of those old borders storytime costumes that's turkeyish (i'm not saying you do, but one never can tell what turns up in the homes of recovering bordersfolk), have him dress up in it and then do some turkey calling.
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