STUMPY by Ron Dillinger

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Published on Monday, 19 July 2010 13:59

Summer 2010 Writing Contest Entry

STUMPY by Ron Dillinger (A Short Story)

A few years ago in the Texas Lowlands, somewhere around the Brazos Bend area, a buzzard was born. He grew to be a very crafty and handsome buzzard. His coat of feathers had a fine sheen which reflected brightly in the sunlight and he was proud. He was so handsome, in fact, that his friends called him “HB”. “C’mon HB,” they’d say, “Let’s go grab some carrion”.

One day HB was having lunch right next to a pond near his home. He did not see the two eyes gliding stealthily toward him through the water. Suddenly, out of the pond leapt an alligator that was also hungry for lunch. He snapped at HB, but HB saw him just in time to jump out of the way of the alligator’s huge mouth. But … the alligator chomped off HB’s right leg.

HB flew around for several hours, wondering “Where am I going to land? How am I going to land? How will I learn to walk again? What will my friends think of me now? I will have only one leg to help me keep cool in the summer!” Finally, HB landed under an outcropping of limestone next to a small stream where he stayed for several days. There, he learned to walk again by extending his wing to help keep his balance.

After a while, he decided he would have to make his home elsewhere. So, he took off for west Texas and landed in Big Bend National Park. He decided to make his home in the Park because there are no alligators in Big Bend. His new friends called him “Stumpy”. He resigned himself to this new nickname.

I met Stumpy at Big Bend National Park one July morning a couple of years ago. I was sitting at a picnic table eating some trail mix in the shade at the end of the paved road just west of the Rio Grande Village store; this area is known as Daniel’s Ranch. I was waiting for my family to come off the trail from the Hot Springs. We agreed I would wait for them there. It was a beautiful morning, not a cloud in the sky. Birds chirped in the huge cottonwood trees and ground squirrels scampered beneath my picnic table, waiting for me to throw them something to eat. Of course, I did not feed them, but they are ever-hopeful creatures.

Suddenly, a group of seven or eight buzzards landed just a few yards away from me. They, too, wanted some of my trail mix. One of the buzzards was much more aggressive than the others. He was hopping around flapping his wings and chasing the other buzzards away. It was then I noticed he had only one leg. It was Stumpy.

I watched Stumpy for a while, and he watched me, probably waiting to see if I was a clumsy eater and might drop some snacks. I didn’t. But pretty soon, I became thirsty so I went to the Suburban to get a drink out of the ice chest. When I turned around, Stumpy was on the picnic table eating my trail mix right out of the bag! The other buzzards were milling around at the foot of the picnic table waiting to see if Stumpy was going to let them have some, too. I yelled at Stumpy “Hey!” and the other buzzards flew away immediately. Stumpy, however, paused long enough to pick up the bag with his beak before he flew away. I chased him a bit and he dropped the bag once, but before I could get to it, he swooped down and picked it up again and flew toward a tree. He dropped the bag one more time, and I snatched it up. The trail mix was mine! I laughed out loud at Stumpy, “I’ll show you!”, but he just regarded me coolly from his perch, waiting for me to turn my back again. But I had become wise, and did not make another mistake.

After my family returned and I told them the story, they would not allow me to eat any more of my trail mix. “It will be full of buzzard germs by now.” they said, “Ew, Dad, so gross!” They made horrible faces at the thought of eating my trail mix, despite the battle I had waged and won. After a spirited discussion, though, I relented and threw away the last of it. But I made everybody give me some of theirs in exchange!

So, the next time you come to Big Bend National Park in the summer, be on the lookout for Stumpy. He’ll be the very aggressive buzzard with one leg. If you see him, hide your trail mix!

Author’s Note: Beginning with the paragraph ‘I met Stumpy at Big Bend National Park’… this story is true.