I’m typing this with an icepack duct taped to my shoulder. Deb and I have lived in the middle of th,e Essen Wildlife Refuge for 29 years, and it wasn’t until 2 years ago that a moose charged us (the one in this picture). At least that moose gave us enough notice to dive out of the way.

Tonight, on our evening walk, Nellie started barking. When we called, she came running out of the trees with a moose in hot pursuit. The entire event took only seconds, but as we ran, my first instinct was to push Deb with me between two closely spaced trees. In the frenzy, I jammed my shoulder into a tree.

I should be fine. But even if it turns out to be something more serious, like a torn rotator cuff, once again we were lucky. Just like the moose of 2 years ago ran right past us, so did this one. It was so close, I don’t know how any of us ended up untouched.

My guess is that tonight’s moose has a baby stashed nearby, just like the previous moose had.