Coyote

I met a coyote this morning while walking cerro de ballenas (Whale Hill). Blonde, slim, curious. After watching awhile and rotating her big ears, she trotted off toward the ocean. A few weeks ago I saw another one, larger, on the beach below, loping along at low tide.

Several years ago in Northern California, I encountered three coyotes on a ridge. I only noticed one at first, but she kept looking over my shoulder until I turned. Ah. Triangulated. I explained to them that I am not food, and carefully moved on.

Not every trickster wants to eat me. I came across a funny one in Pacifica that leaped sideways into a bush when I trudged around a corner of the bluff. Then she leaped back out. Then in. Then out. Until I laughed aloud. She, too, was curious, and the visit lasted longer than most. Completely changed my mood, just like Blondie today.

Books:

—Sea Change: stories & splashes

—Dance First …ask questions later: poems and paintings

—Shoulds are for Saints: the true life adventures of Suzy Le Speed

—Diary of a Reluctant Traveler: 15 months on the road from coast to coast to coast—solo