Kangaroos are not native to Union county, Tennessee. It is usually too big of a hop from Australia to this neck of the woods. I have never seen a live one. The zoos of my childhood didn't stray much from the lion, tiger and monkey varieties. No Kangaroos.

I still haven't seen one in person, but my daughter Anne has. Let me tell you about her encounter with Sir Kangaroo on Hickory Star Road. She was returning from her weekly Sunday grocery shopping trip to Knoxvlle. She shops on early Sunday mornings to avoid the crowds. It is a tiring trip and she was anxious to get home. As she turned onto Hickory Star Road, she noticed a car stopped in her lane of traffic. She couldn't see why they had stopped until the kangaroo came into view, turned and looked at her. He was a big muscular fellow. She could see that he was a male about six feet tall and brown in color with a dark red chest.

Sir Kangaroo was standing on the center line scoping out the area. As more cars approached, he moved over to the other lane and started hopping back toward the house across from the electrical substation. By this time several cars were there with some honking their horns.

Anne was worried that someone might hit him. She call 911. Yes, she did. When the officer answered and asked what was the emergency, Anne told him, "There is a big male kangaroo about six feet tall sitting on the center line of Hickory Star Road." After a moment of silence, the officer said he didn't know what to do about that. Anne told him again of the kangaroo's location. He paused again and then said he would dispatch someone.

The kangaroo hopped down into the yard and traffic resumed. By the time Anne reached the four way stop at Hickory Valley Road, her phone buzzed. It was dispatch telling her the problem had been solved and thanked her for calling.

Anne could hardly wait to tell me about her encounter with Sir Kangaroo. We both had a good laugh out of it. I asked how she knew it was a male kangaroo. She said a female has a smooth tummy. This one didn't.

Living out here in the woods, we see a variety of wildlife. I remember the coyote that was stalking our neighbor's puppy. We have seen bear, cougar, wild cats, skunk, possum and rabbits over the years, but no kangaroos. This was a first. So if you see a kangaroo hopping down the bunny trail and you call 911, they know know what to do. There might be more in the area.