Yes, you read correctly! I have a wee bit of temper and I don’t always think things through when I react to a situation. In this case, fighting a kangaroo.

In August of 1995, I had the honor of going to Australia-Alice Springs, specifically. While I was there, a couple who ran a Kangaroo rescue center asked if I would watch the center while they went home for Christmas. Of course, I said yes. The babies sleep in pillowcases and are so adorable. I got to hold them and cuddle with them, so I said yes.

The next morning, I let the babies out of their pillowcases, put the pillowcases in the washer, and then went outside to feed the babies. In the process of feeding the babies, a half-grown kangaroo tried to bite me. I tapped him on his furry nose as I said “No”, then went back to feeding the babies. The brat tried to take another bite out of me and I tapped his nose a little harder with a firmer “No”. I tried to turn back and that son of gun bit me!

Now, a half-grown Kangaroo is as tall as my 5’6″ height so we are eye-to-eye. I smacked him harder after the bite and he went back on his tail and kicked me. I flew about 3 feet and landed hard on the dirt covered ground. Now, common sense would dictate that I should just nurse my wound and go about my business.

Like I said, I do stupid things when I get angry. Common sense went out the window and I was in a full-blown rage. I got up, dusted myself off, and ran into the house looking for an equalizer. I found a broom, went back outside, and whacked him. He punched me. I whacked him again. He kicked me again. Then we were off in a true knock out, drag out fight.

I do not know how many times I hit the ground or how many times that sucker hit me or kicked me, but I got lucky. He leaned back on his tail getting ready to kick me again, just as I was coming up with the broom. The broom hit him under his chin, knocking him off balance and he fell. After rolling around a few seconds, he got back to his feet, shook his head, and jumped away.

I’m standing there a little stunned that the fight was over. I don’t know how long we fought, but I had a split lip which was dripping blood. My body was aching everywhere and I was sweaty and dirty. I didn’t care. I won.

I don’t know how long I stood there, but it gradually dawned on me. I just had a fight with a Kangaroo. I started seeing the humor in that and began to laugh. I also imagined what people would have thought if they had witnessed the fight and I started laughing harder.

Yeah, I was stupid but, like I said, I do stupid things when I get angry, even fighting Kangaroos. This is a true story and my family will vouch about my temper and doing stupid things. Hopefully, I have grown wiser as I’m now older. I wouldn’t hold my breath though.