Of Geese and Men
A family of geese were crossing the road this morning. As I quickly stopped and patiently waited for them to complete their leisurely stroll across the street, I observed an oncoming SUV stop too. A sports car behind them, probably muttering something to the effect of “why is this asshole stopping for no apparent reason?!”, quickly changed lanes to pass them, only to immediately put on their brakes as well. Braking is the only option you have. What’s the alternative? Plowing through a harmless family of geese? No matter how big of a rush we were in, no matter how groggy we were at 6:45 in the morning, we all stopped until they made their journey safely across.
I then passed an adult goose this evening as I started out on a jog. Since I’ve had run-ins with territorial geese before, I knew to keep my distance. I no longer had a steel and fiberglass shell to protect me. I stayed out of the 20-foot radius that was mandated by mother nature’s restraining order. Despite keeping my distance, this goose still hissed at me. I wanted to say “Hey, listen here bud. This is a two-way street (literally).”
Twenty steps further, I had to avoid a flattened goose. My condolences. I guess we still have some work to do.
May 9, 2011