The Cat, the Man, Boy and the Dog.

Sure I could hike in front like a normal “manly” man. But then I could not concentrate on her special swagger. I love the view of the forest but I like the view of her more. No I am not a pervert, she is my wonderful bride of twenty years.

She has lived with me in a horrible shack and then helped me come out of my fog and move into the home of my dreams. Did I mention she brought an angelic son into the world just for me? Probably maybe more for her. But isn’t that how good marriages work things out. How do you have a wonderful dream life without a fine mutt named Buster Brown?

My doctor told me that I should just not worry about it and settle into being crazy. Maybe alright for me but not good for the son and wife. Hell, not good for anyone.

I just spent 10 minutes staring at and moving my fingers to work out the kinks with just intentions, leaving the meds up on the kitchen cabinet. Buster requires some hard petting. If not he just leans against my leg and scratches himself. Dogs, wives and sons are normal in general. I am out there in general.

Me and the boy and buster were out hunting. Binoculars and a camera are our weapons against the beasts of the world. Mom did not join us as she was in one of her episodes of work until you drop and that could take years. But then something triggered and I went into an episode. Buster and the boy instantly knew something was off. They went off ten years and stared with huge open eyes wondering what would happen next. They both understood that some crazy stuff was going to go down.

By golly it was a scent that put me into the mode. All the sudden Buster got it too. He looked like he was howling but he had the good sense not to make a sound. Buster’s reaction was all the verification that the boy needed. The game was afoot.

Tracks. Big ones. No nails leaving the imprint. A cat of sorts and by the looks larger than 200 pounds. Protocol was followed. Down on one knee and silent. Buster in front of the boy ready to defend. The wind shifted taking away the scent. Now we knew what direction our prey was.

A quiet jog up the hill and down to the creek. Stop again onto a knee. Buster was starting to warn us that the game was near. A sound like a baby crying. And this meant danger. No not a baby but young cubs. No need to go further as the momma would come to us in full protection attitude. Buster “sit and stay” with a hand movement. Ten feet apart and I could swear I heard the boy’s heart beating as he quietly and slowly pulled out the camera weapon. I was freaking but was trained well enough to know running was not an option as that could be fatal with a huge cat on the hunt and protection.

Life tosses curve balls at you and brushes you away from the plate. But this was a 90 mph fast ball aimed at our helmet. I chortled to myself. A thought went into and out of my head about how pissed off my wife would be if I brought either of the boys home mauled.

Another hand gesture to get them to stay still and not move. She appeared within 20 yards of us in the underbrush of the forest. I was scared to death at the sight of a huge Mountain Lion. “Please Buster stay cool”.

And then it happened in a flash. The sound was remarkable and the fear palpable and smelling like hell was breaking loose. Then the shadow and the screech. A huge eagle was headed to the cubs. At least a 12 foot wingspan. So the cougar took off to protect the young. Us for dinner would wait. Buster told me later that I was an idiot through ignoring me for a few days. The boy got about a million clicks with the photos on Youtube. The couch was my abode for a few nights as mom saw the photos and heard the story.

That eagle did not even attack the cubs. It just made the gesture to save us.