Make Way for Turklings

On Friday afternoon Ed and I made our way into downtown Shelbyville for lunch and a few errands. We parked the truck on Main Street and walked up one side to the Post Office before turning around and walking down the other side to a little cafe for lunch and a strawberry shake.

Along the way we stopped in two antique shops. Now, as you must know by now, I've spent the last two years getting rid of "antiques" and trying hard to keep our new home from too much "country" clutter. Nevertheless, it was fun to poke around these shops, looking at crocks, cast iron skillets and corn bread pans, old kitchen utensils, fishing lures, and out-of-print books.

While Ed was checking out the serious fiction (coming up with a first edition of Henry Miller's Tropic of Capricorn) I gravitated to the children's books, picking up a well-worn copy of Make Way for Ducklings, a picture book written and illustrated by Robert McCloskey and winner of the 1942 Caldecott Medal. I have always loved the charcoal illustrations and the story of traffic being stopped in downtown Boston for Mama Duck and her eight ducklings to cross safely into the island lagoon, where they meet up with Papa Duck and live happily ever after.

The story's scene of the crossing of the ducks on the road was recreated for me this morning. As I walked down our drive, a Mama wild turkey and her 11 turklings crossed the road in single file and disappeared into the brush. Just as the 11th one was entering the tree line, Mama Turkey circled back out and got in line behind him/her, just to make sure they all ended up where she wanted them.

Once I got up to the place where they entered, they took flight – not exactly the most graceful thing I've seen.

I can only hope they make their home on our farm and live happily ever after.