The coyotes were hunting us by the light of the full moon….

 …..not at our mountain cabin in Pine, but at Nuestra Casa in Leisure World!  At our home in the middle of Mesa Arizona, a major city of over half a million people—in the old folks community of Leisure World.

Here is the setting….we left home on our bicycles before 4:30 a.m.....as we usually do (if not earlier). 

The full moon was shining brightly, lighting up the streets, paths, and golf courses.  We were flying around on this brilliant, exhilarating night at 16 miles per hour, and having a blast!

We cycled by the home where dear Mom and Dad had lived for 20 years.  

The moon lit up their home—this home holds so many good memories.

We both sang to the heavens, “We love you, Mom and Dad!”  And I added, “I love your Danny.  I will always love him.  I promise that I’ll be good to him.”  We do this every morning when we’re cycling.  And we’re both SURE that they hear our messages.

I was setting a complex, squiggly course to give us the best view of the glorious moon….weaving in and out of roads and paths, zooming by ponds with fountains lit up in all their glory.

The moon became partially hidden by clouds.

Suddenly, I heard Danny, who was following me, yelling, “Coyote! Behind you, on your left!”  We braked on the path between Fairway 9 and 10.

And there it was….bold as brass, pacing within a few feet of us, not scared at all, but aggressively maintaining eye contact with us.

To our surprise, when we took off cycling again, the coyote started chasing me again.  It only veered slightly away when I yelled at it.  

It must have realized then that I wasn’t a strange animal, but a “strange acting” human.

We continued our ride basking in the beauty of the earth in the light of the shining moon. 

Unbelievably, we spotted two more coyotes out hunting on the fairways.  Luckily, not hunting us, this time!

Dawn was breaking…. 

…..and then we saw several more coyotes heading to the safety of their dens, and hiking places.

All day long the coyotes will be invisible to humans.  Everyone will feel that they live and play in a controlled senior living community, where wildlife exists outside the walls of Leisure World, far away in the desert.

But we know that the coyotes, foxes, skunks, and families of raccoons are hiding during the day.  They are watching the silly humans hit a little white ball with metal sticks and ride around in circles on their go-carts (what most other people call golf carts).

And we know that when the sun sets and the moon rises, all these smart critters will come out of their hiding places and hunt and play with us.

We love the nighttime world….we feel an affinity with these animals that come out at night.  They are our friends, and we love them and the world that they live in!