Why Did the Squirrel Cross the Road?

The At Peace blog has been dealing with big issues lately. I have tried to tackle long term grief, properly saying good bye to loved ones, suicides, mass murders, and many other difficult issues. This post was written months ago and not used because we had such big issues circulating around our country. So for the first October post I thought I would tread lightly and write about a population you might not think about. With this population busy looking for food for the winter, I thought we might take a rest from the discussion about human grief and loss.

Where I live there seems to be an incredible increase in the squirrel population. The funny Chip and Dale-like animal running in the yard, on the fence, and away from our dog are fun to watch but this presents another driving dilemma. I recently approached a Stop Sign and before I completely stopped, a squirrel ran in front of me. I stopped about ten feet from the stop sign. The squirrel stopped also. He looked at me, and I looked at him or her. Somehow, he or she figured out (s)he was about to be squished. (Please excuse the varying pronouns for the squirrel.) 

I am one of those drivers who will wait for the squirrel to make a decision. The folks behind me were being kind and not honking their horn. I was wondering what was going through the tiny brain in that squirrel’s head. “Go for the tree across the street?” Or, “He’s got a big SUV, better just stay still for a few minutes.” 

He or she did just sit there. “I wondered, is (s)he thinking what was going through my mind?” After a minute or two, (s)he ran back the same way (s)he came. I guess the tree on the other side of the street would have to wait.

To answer the question, Why does the squirrel cross the road?  – this post is not a joke! Squirrels often don’t avoid the car. Wildlife experts estimate over one million are killed every day by vehicles. It is suggested the driver slow down while the squirrel runs away from the threatening sound of the size of its biggest predator, the car. So, (s)he was thinking about the size of my vehicle! I didn’t run over the squirrel, but I am about to run over my personal maximum word count for this post. Regardless, May your October be peaceful and joyful. I hope you decide to return to At Peace … unfortunately, I suspect there will always be ways to continue to help people on their journey through loss, along with an occasional world view you would not have thought about. May you, and the squirrel population, be At Peace.