From JuJu with Love

Recently, Maizey and I were out on our first walk of the morning.

It’s usually my favorite walk of the day.

Around 6:30 or 7:00 a.m., the neighborhood is quiet. We rarely see another soul. I have my AirPods in, Maizey has extra energy in the cool morning air, and she’s busy sniffing every tree, bush, and blade of grass she can find.

In other words, it was a completely normal morning.

Until it wasn’t.

Out of nowhere, a young boy came up behind us on a bicycle and startled both of us.

Maizey barked.

I jumped.

And apparently, somewhere nearby, a turkey decided that was his cue.

Suddenly, an enormous and very angry turkey burst out of the woods next to the sidewalk.

He was flapping his wings.

Squawking.

Charging.

And, for reasons still unknown, apparently determined to make us his mortal enemies.

Maizey and I took off down the sidewalk while the turkey chased us.

I turned into my subdivision.

The turkey followed.

At this point, I was beginning to question my place in the food chain.

Then a very kind woman driving a large G-Wagon stopped and offered to help.

She tried positioning her SUV between us and the turkey.

The turkey was unimpressed.

He simply went around it and continued his pursuit.

That’s when she rolled down her window and said, “Come on, get in! I’ll drive you home!”

Now, if a stranger offering me a ride home sounds questionable, I would argue that being hunted by an angry turkey changes the normal rules of decision-making.

But fortunately, we were only about a block from home.

I thanked her and assured her we would survive.

Eventually, the turkey decided he had made his point and wandered off.

Maizey and I continued home, both a little shaken and significantly more respectful of wildlife.

The funniest part?

That route is our regular walk.

We go that way almost every day.

For the next several days, however, I took alternate routes because neither Maizey nor I was particularly interested in finding out whether the turkey was still holding a grudge.

Eventually, we worked up the courage to return.

Thankfully, the turkey has not resurfaced.

But every time we walk past that spot, I still glance toward the woods.

Just in case.

Because once you’ve been chased by a turkey, you never really trust a quiet patch of woods again.

From Juju with love 💙🦃