In Mayan culture, each person had an animal companion. Although most leaders’ animal was the leopard, because it symbolizes strength and power, my animal is the opposite. I chose the vulture as my companion. These birds are disgusting scavengers, who wait for an animal to die and then eat the corpse, instead of loathsome predators, who must kill other animals for their food. There are many types of these nasty creatures, but the Turkey Vulture is my favorite. This vulture variant is most common in North America and the United States and has a bald, red-colored head with two large nostrils. Ugly. Gruesome. Massive. Vultures are sickly savage scavengers. Because these birds are grotesque, many people are frightened of them. They don’t have to work for their meals, since they feed on roadkill and rotting carcasses. Therefore, they have a carefree life compared to other birds, who either have to hunt other animals or have to worry about being hunted. Vultures are common in almost every continent, excluding Australia, Oceania, and Antarctica. In Mayan times and still to this day, my animal companion, the vulture, symbolized the cycle of life and death, which is why I chose it.