Snarl by John Francis Pearring Jr

Author:John Francis Pearring Jr. [Pearring, John Francis]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781666745580
Publisher: Wipf and Stock Publishers
Published: 2022-06-23T23:40:46+00:00

Chapter Four

Spring

YZ

And in that day I will make a covenant with them, with the beasts of the field, and with the fowls of the air, and with the creeping things of the earth: and I will destroy the bow, and the sword, and war out of the land: and I will make them sleep secure.

—Hosea 2:18

YZ

Egg

Red lived in a dugout hole below a rock crevice, a morning’s jog from the top of the canyon. His cache of the lion parts he brought back from his discovery a few days ago would last him for quite a while. He knew, pretty soon, that larger animals would probably find and finish off the lion Red stashed in a hole.

The diligent fox hustled back the very next day to his buried carcass. His incomplete attempt at covering it up had proved him out. Coyote had moved into the area. He knew them. They were a constantly hungry group of animals, skulking through the forest and the canyon daily, scrounging for things to eat. They made a dent on the meat, and Red didn’t want to be there when they came back.

Foxes don’t think in terms of good news and bad news. Like any low-level predator, Red operated from a position of shrewd caution, a crafty mix of low expectations and busy confidence. The lion meat was only his for a while, he knew, but getting to it first gave him courage. Nonetheless, fresh lion food meant the coyotes would be occupied and satisfied. Also, one less lion to worry about.

Back at his foxhole, Red was getting a well-needed rest. The meat he had salvaged meant he could lounge and ponder for another day or two.

The sun warmed the rock above his home. When he could feel the increased heat coming from the rock, he could leave the hole and lie on the rock as he did now. Sitting on a high slant amongst pines and aspen growing everywhere, the view from his rock piqued Red’s imagination. Yes, foxes have a dream state. Though limited, foxes are capable of somewhat long memories. He enjoyed these moments of being warmed, rested, and thinking fearlessly about things.

Red watched the sun’s rays tipple through the new leaves on the aspens, sparkling on his rock. Why couldn’t every day be like this, he wondered? He blinked at his little part of the world. The sun reached halfway up the farthest pine in the distance, and sunlight through the forest reminded him of something. He stood up.

Red heard the man singing.

Time to go get his egg.

Tuft watched the falcon flying in circles above her head. She had only recently connected the falcon with her mealtime. When younger, watching birds circling in the air, Tuft would get dizzy. She could tell that her strength was back because the ground didn’t spin when she looked down.

She hadn’t been hungry for two days. That didn’t happen very often. She ate what the lion brought her. Each time she fed, the falcon was flying overhead.

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