The Race Home(short story-page 4)

          I usually followed my path home but decided for some uncertain reason to cut through an opening in a damaged fence row that was obviously a path for other critters too, a pretty beaten down pathway was laid down so into the gauntlet I meandered without much fanfare. The field of fescue was huge and high as my chest and ready for hay harvesting, I could literally barely see in front of me as the fescue swayed in the wind with its heavy laden buds that moved to and fro with each wind shift like some beautiful symphony in perfect unison, then I stepped on what I thought was a stick, but suddenly it moved and reared up to greet me eye to eye and immediately I thought it was some huge mamba snake. It was a blue racer snake and it was mad as hell, it sniped at me and hissed, I backed away and ran for the fence row across the two acre field, now, I’m a quick runner, ran a 5:32 mile once in high school and was clocked, but this snake was faster than me it seemed, I was terrified, I stopped for a second and thought I lost it in the middle of the field, looked back and I saw it reared its head above the tall fescue like some king cobra, and in a split second started at me again, I still had to sprint another hundred yards until the fence row, but I could hear him gaining on me, and dare not look back again, this snake was from hell, I suddenly came to the fence and thought if I stop to straddle this fence he’ll get me, so I hurdled it with my gun and all which was a five-foot fence, barely made it because it was difficult while grasping my gun-quite strenuous. I landed on the other side and stopped to look back and there he was but he couldn’t maneuver quick enough through the woven fence and briars that impeded his pathway. I gasped for a moment and took a long sigh of relief, I was quite drained and I still had to clean those squirrels too. But, that was quite a morning to contend with, one mad snake bigger than me. The blue racer was over 15 feet long, I’ve never seen one that big in my life, still haven’t. 

          I cleaned those squirrels and placed them in our basement refrigerator. I sat down on the couch with my baby Tara, my beloved beagle hound, she never went hunting with me though, I just loved her too much to lose her. We snuggled and watched the morning news. My Tara was a great dog, rarely nothing got by her, she was acutely aware of everything and anything that came near our home. She barked endlessly when she saw something out of line. Tara was one of my best dogs I’ve ever had in my life.