Gobble On - Written June 3, 2024 - Posted April 16, 2025

Gobble On

Written By Wanda Rodriguez 

Written - June 3,2024

Published - April 16, 2025

*** Note - this piece was written nearly a year ago. ***

Did you know that turkeys could fly?  They are birds after all, so I guess it shouldn’t be a big surprise, but it is!!  I honestly had no idea that turkeys could fly!  I mean sure, I have seen them walking around, (I’ve also seen them basted and browned, but that’s a subject for another time!) but never have I seen them take flight.  Much to my delight and amazement, I have witnessed turkeys (lots of them!!!) perched high up in a tree.  How the heck did they get up there anyway!?!?  A ladder?  An elevator?  A rocket? David Copperfield (a magician never reveals his secrets!)? Nothing made sense!  They must have flown up there, right?  How else could they have gotten up there?  Who knew?!?!  Not me, that’s for ding-dang sure!!  Another little fun fact for ya, if you call out to them (like this, ahem…. throat clearing … deep breath… Gobble!!  Gobble!!  Gobble!! …) they will answer you.  No joke!  I have seen this first-hand!  For the most part, however, they just sit up in the tree and chill for the night. I guess it helps protect them from predators. (Still, how did they get up there?!?! Seriously!)

Encountering my very first (only!) turkey tree in the spring of 2024 (while visiting Minot, ND - why not Minot, as they say!!), prompted me to do a little research. First, let me say that I am completely taken aback by the fact that these large, otherwise clunky looking creatures can actually fly AND manage to sleep on a tree limb all night without falling off!  Amazing! Research revealed that turkeys can, in fact, fly but interestingly, farm raised turkeys typically cannot fly. Side note - some of these farm raised birds can barely walk, unlike their cousins in the wild who can do both.  I suppose this would account for the tenderness vs. gaminess encountered when “inviting” a turkey to dinner. (haha!)  It also might help to cut down on fowls escaping from the farm.  But, as usual, I digress.  The fact remains that I stand amazed at the sight of these large creatures, upwards of 30 of them, sitting comfortably in a single tree.

Work with me here as I do not mean to equate God to the turkeys in the tree. However, the image of the birds perched patiently, quietly, unassumingly in their turkey tree did bring a comparison to mind. As they sit high above, waiting and watching, they will answer if you call out to them (Gobble!!  Gobble!!  Gobble!! …). God also waits patiently for us to look up, to seek Him out, to find Him and talk to Him. He waits unwaveringly for us to reach out and say hello and He is good and faithful to answer, even if it may not be what we want to hear at the time.

“Chatting” with the residents of a turkey tree is challenging in that the first step is finding such a tree. (It is harder than you would think!) This is compounded by the fact that they are pretty single threaded and tend to say the same thing over and over again, Gobble!!  Gobble!!  Gobble!!  Conversations with God though, do not face the same limitations!  Wherever you are, whatever is happening around you, whether alone or in a crowded room, it matters not!  God is with you always, His presence is all around. You can quietly call upon God (like chatting with an old and dear friend) or you can cry out with all of your might to God in heaven.  Either way, you will find Him waiting patiently for you to come calling.  He will hear you.  He will answer. You don’t have to drive around to find the place where He roosts. He is everywhere all the time. He is good. He is faithful. He is with you. He will hear you when you come calling, and His door is always open.

My journey over the past year has been filled with elements of fear and trepidation as well as profound moments of joy and anticipation for what lies ahead.  I know that God is with me always.  He holds me close, inviting me into the “tree” with Him.  Keeping me safe from falling out of the tree, much like the plump turkeys perched high upon the branches.  I know He is there to listen anytime I call out, and for this I am thankful.  Seek and you too will find!

Gobble On!

As always, thank you for taking this walk with me, and if you know how those fair-weathered-fowls got up into the tree in the first place, please let me know!!  Until then, it remains a mystery.  (haha!)