When Wild Animal Attack!

When Wild Animal Attack!
The blood curdling scream sent my heart to my toes. Was someone hurt? At this point adrenaline kicks in and all my actions are controlled by instinct. Of the four brave souls in my immediately vicinity, it’s the young ladies Rachele and Jacqui that I fear for the most. They both have young daughters at home who would be lost without their love and guidance. As I rush to Rachele’s side, I feel a sudden rush of relief as I see what I saw just moments ago. She is in a familiar stance with one arm resting on her weed eater while she expertly text messages with the other. I notice no real injuries other than the inevitable thumb cramping. At this point I continue on toward Jacqui. In five seconds I was up the hill, but to my surprise, Jacqui was napping peacefully under the shade of beautiful birch. To be safe, I gently shook her awake. Her quick response of, “Piss off you wanker!” told me that she was safe, and that waking her was the wrong move. Suddenly I was overtaken with nausea and the sensation of ice rushing through my veins. What about Ryan? In my rush to assume that the horribly high pitched scream came from a girl I totally neglected my most needy and potentially most accident prone working mate. Down the steep unforgiving hill I bounded. The look of sheer terror in Ryan’s eyes will haunt me for years to come. “What is it I?” I yelled. There was no response. He only starred off in the distance with slack jaw and steely eyes. It was for his own good, but it took the cold slap of a work glove across his stunned face to bring him back to us. After checking his vitals and concluding that there wasn’t any real harm, I began to question Ryan about the events that brought us to this point. “Musk Rat!” he screamed. “It swam over my foot,” he mumbled. “What?” I responded. “This was all about a little musk rat?” I fumed. I couldn’t believe it. Even Ryan’s claims of enormous size and razor sharp teeth couldn’t bring me to forgive him for what he put me through.

So what has service learning taught me? Well, I’ve learned that high pitch doesn’t always equate to female. More importantly, I’ve learned that helping clean up a small little dumpy creek isn’t only about helping the people that live near this creek. It is also about helping the cute, innocent creatures that live in the small dumpy creek. All the watering and machete play was devoted to make the environment of small creatures a better place to live and prosper. The fact that I proved myself protector of other in need is merely a reflection of who I am, and who I shall forever be.