Yesterday morning around 11am I got a phone call from the city’s school district that I was hired as a Guest Teacher and that orientation was next month on the first day of school return. I was delighted, yet also scared of the potential changes and conflicts this could create with my current employer.
But, it’s best to take what one can in this economy. I like my freedom to pursue my many interests. I have three classes next semester; I don’t want to be overstretched like I was back in mid September. I would love to work just three days a week for the next few months just to have enough time to focus on my studies.
So, excited and anxious, I took the dogs out for a short walk along Copper Glance Road, an eroded wash east of the San Pedro River. It was a nice day outside, with temperatures in the low 70s and little breeze. Locals come here to shot their pistols and to drink beer.
I walked along one jeep road and came up to a large mesquite tree. Under the tree was someone’s trash of tin cans and plastic which wasn't visible from the road . Next to the tin cans was a dirty white mattress cover lumped in a pile. Sadie took an interest in this pile and kept sniffing it.
I came up closer to the mattress cover and noticed the outline of a small body underneath. It looked like a small person, laying in a fetal position. I grabbed a mesquite twig and poked at the cover. Sure enough, I felt resistance. Sadie kept sniffing around. Then I noticed the flies around the cover. This wasn’t good news. I knew then that I had discovered a grisly grave.
Shit. There was no one around to call for help. It was just me and three restless dogs.
What to do? I dropped the twig and walked away, not knowing what to do. Should I throw the cover off to make sure I had discovered a body? Guilt quickly overcame me. No, I couldn’t do it. I had to make sure that what I had found was indeed a body before I came to some erroneous conclusion. I walked back to the mattress cover, grabbed the twig and this time lifted the cover up.
And then the stench overwhelmed me. It was as if I had literally opened a can of flies: suddenly they flew up from the corpse. The mouth was gaping open, badly decomposed. The eyes were already dehydrated. The body was lying on its back.
It was the badly decomposed body of a pitbull.
But, it’s best to take what one can in this economy. I like my freedom to pursue my many interests. I have three classes next semester; I don’t want to be overstretched like I was back in mid September. I would love to work just three days a week for the next few months just to have enough time to focus on my studies.
So, excited and anxious, I took the dogs out for a short walk along Copper Glance Road, an eroded wash east of the San Pedro River. It was a nice day outside, with temperatures in the low 70s and little breeze. Locals come here to shot their pistols and to drink beer.
I walked along one jeep road and came up to a large mesquite tree. Under the tree was someone’s trash of tin cans and plastic which wasn't visible from the road . Next to the tin cans was a dirty white mattress cover lumped in a pile. Sadie took an interest in this pile and kept sniffing it.
I came up closer to the mattress cover and noticed the outline of a small body underneath. It looked like a small person, laying in a fetal position. I grabbed a mesquite twig and poked at the cover. Sure enough, I felt resistance. Sadie kept sniffing around. Then I noticed the flies around the cover. This wasn’t good news. I knew then that I had discovered a grisly grave.
Shit. There was no one around to call for help. It was just me and three restless dogs.
What to do? I dropped the twig and walked away, not knowing what to do. Should I throw the cover off to make sure I had discovered a body? Guilt quickly overcame me. No, I couldn’t do it. I had to make sure that what I had found was indeed a body before I came to some erroneous conclusion. I walked back to the mattress cover, grabbed the twig and this time lifted the cover up.
And then the stench overwhelmed me. It was as if I had literally opened a can of flies: suddenly they flew up from the corpse. The mouth was gaping open, badly decomposed. The eyes were already dehydrated. The body was lying on its back.
It was the badly decomposed body of a pitbull.
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