Circle of Light

And it was two AM or somewhere close.

I stood on the northbound entrance ramp to I.95 heading further north,

Homeward after some nefarious adventure.

A cantankerous heat clung to every shiny surface.

Though it was apt no car would pass for several hours

I dared not rest against the lamp post for fear of a missed ride.

Coyotes skulked in the darkness

I heard yips and snickers, a howl or two coming closer

But not inside the light, so that I became afraid.

A smudge of grey fur dipped into the light and vanished.

Being familiar with the hunting techniques of coyotes I knew

That if I saw one in front, there were two behind

the daring interloper was a feint, a distraction,

A test to see if I was packing heat.

I moved to the center of the light and stood illuminated.

Clouds of insects, hovered or died on the lamp

And bats swooped through, preying them

So the light appeared zoomy.

Coyotes, like any mob, psych themselves

Up to do the unspeakable. I recognized the whines and chatters,

The yips and howls as exactly the mob daring each other

To get closer, try and touch, count coup, so to speak

And I knew a step beyond touching was something terrible.

Just as I knew that stepping outside the light might be fatal

In an agonizing way, I also knew that doing nothing

Was not in my nature.

So I opened my throat and sang, “Desperado” by the Eagles,

A cappella. Without a pitch pipe I have no idea if I was in tune,

But I do know

That my voice surprised me with its strength and clarity.

“Oh oh you’re a hard one, but I know that you got your reasons,

These things that are pleasing you, will hurt you somehow”

The coyotes believed that I was singing to them and they sat

Outside of the light, but nevertheless an attentive audience.

And an owl screeched.

When I sang, “It may be raining, but there’s a rainbow above you”

The coyotes joined in howling a lament as poignant as the mine

An ache of longing for connection and pain for the lost souls without it.

At “You better let somebody love you” we all howled the advice to ourselves

And cried for our failure to take it.

They stayed with me for awhile, outside the circle of light

But present in every respect.

Then, they drifted off, to roam and hunt, to cry and

Of course,

To belong.