|
|
|
Back To Blog Entries
| Monkey Hunt
by jdmo at 4/24/2008 10:29:20 AM
For many years my father was an incredible outdoorsman in Valley Junction, Iowa. You could pick any season and he had at least a couple outdoor pursuits to keep him busy. It could be hunting, fishing, trapping, mushroom hunting, looking for Indian artifacts…he was always outdoors.
Growing up I became used to sitting in a restaurant and having an old friend of his stop by our booth to say hello. The greeting usually began, “Did your Dad ever tell you about the time he shot three pheasants in 10 seconds? I was there, I saw it!”
But, there was one incident to which my dad always wished he would have had a witness. He went squirrel hunting one frosty, late fall morning, next to the Raccoon River close to town. He had 4 red tails by ten O’clock and was heading out of the woods to clean then them for that night’s supper. Then…he saw it. About fifteen feet high in a young walnut tree, staring him right in the eye…a monkey. Yes, it was a monkey, I guarantee it!
It scampered a few feet higher as Dad approached. Then it jumped almost ten feet onto the branches of another tree. He followed the little primate from tree to tree for five minutes. It wasn’t tame, but it wasn’t afraid either. As you might guess, monkeys are not indigenous to the state of Iowa.
Dad left and rushed back to the house to tell my mom of the incredible discovery. To his chagrin…he was met with laughter and accusations of imbibing before noon, which is unacceptable behavior in the corn-state! The chuckles and chiding finally reached an intolerable point for my dad and he decided what he had to do!
“I will prove it to you!” My dad exclaimed. “I’m gonna go shoot that monkey and bring him back here. Then you’ll see!”
“Okay dear,” Mom giggled. “I’ll start boiling some water. Or do you want me to bake him in the oven?”
My dad went back to the woods and within minutes located the furry creature. He had a clear close shot of thirty feet with his twelve-gauge. He aimed right at his chest and as he started to pull the trigger, he stopped. The little monkey was looking him right in the eye. The cute little face was almost smiling at him, trying to cheer him up. It was so human like he just couldn’t go through with it.
He dejectedly tromped back to the truck and drove home. Mom realized that she had pushed as far as she could and didn’t ever mention it again. And isn’t that what true love is? Knowing when you’ve pushed the monkey too far?
|
|
|
|
|
 |