Coyotes, raccoons, and foxes, oh my….

….by the light of the shining moon.

It’s 3 a.m. The full moon lights up the roads and paths as we zoom around Leisure World on our bikes.  My hair streams behind me in the wind.  It is early fall and warm, but the hot summer nights are behind us.  The air is refreshing, invigorating.  We are alone….the night is ours.

The world is silent, except for the night birds calling to each other and splashing in the ponds.  We are cycling together in the middle of a metropolitan area with a population of five million people.  There is no one else, just my Danny and me.   It feels surreal, as if we are the only people left on Earth, in an empty city filled with vacant houses, streets, and buildings.  

But we are not alone….we are cycling with wild animals who are hunting in the moonlight. A raccoon with four half grown babies huddled around their mother as she herds them into the safety of a bush.  A fox dashes in front of our bikes, than runs beside us on the grass towards a pond.  

Suddenly, there is a young coyote in front of us.  It stops, curious to see who is invading her hunting grounds.

Nonchalantly, she trots off to find a morning meal for her cubs.  

We marvel at the amazing world of wildlife that we find at night in the middle of this endless city.  We know that it is a valuable gift that is given to us, and we treasure it.  This gift pulls us from our embrace in our cozy bed….so we can be part of the magic that is only experienced in the dark of the night, hidden from the world of humans.