There he was in the pre-dawn, lumbering across my backyard. Startled, as I raised the window sash to hurry him along, he turned into an olympic athlete... scaling a wire fence, jumping down onto the neighbor's lawn, sprinting across the yard, up and over another fence, disappearing down the hill, through the brush and finally, skirting the swamp (Lily Pond).

This siting was actually a bit scary, what you might describe as a close call. Lucy and I had just come in from the yard. It was starting to get light, so I hadn't bothered with the floodlights. Fortunately, Lucy had stayed in another part of the yard, with me. You can have daylight savings time - I want my early, well-lit mornings back! Anyway, my Chihuahua-mix would have been no match for any raccoon, let alone this particular beast.

Given to momentary hyperbole, I later told my mother he was the size of a Buick... OK, maybe a Volkswagon Beetle. Honestly, I see my share of raccoons, with the swamp down back, and I have never seen one this big. He had a gorgeous coat and actually looked fat and healthy. Here comes spring and all the creatures, great and small!

©Deb Lambert 2008