since i wrote last (long delay for one lousy reason: the infection is back, and one lovely reason: my three fabulous brothers, john, doug & scott, came to stay for a long weekend/short week but whichever, it wasn't long enough), i have seen a good sized red fox go trotting by on the opposite bank. even with no binocs i saw the white tip of its tail and its black trimmed ears, wearing those stylish black leggings, a snappy dresser.
marty thinks it was looking for goose eggs to eat. he has noticed the farm geese are so dumb they often lay their eggs close to the water during low tide so the river moves them, breaks them, disappears them as soon as it starts rising. this happens twice a day, geese, are you listening? since foxes eat just about anything, river-scrambled eggs, in such abundance, must be a delicious easy treat. kind of like how we feel about about fiddleheads, also in season.
there are many animals i admire, adore or am dazzled by. foxes are high on the lists, especially the admiration list. they are kicky, nimble, nervy, intense, smart in both senses of the word and self-contained. but i think they breed only because they have to, poor dears. in all the photos i looked at, their babies are beyond adorable but those mothers were a hot mess as my friend rose likes to say - all scraggly, worn out and emaciated, clearly not having a drop of fun.
so i guess there are always trade-offs. whereas i have thrived on mothering, a fox looks happier and certainly more sleek, well-nourished and dapper when child-free. life as a kit seems like the peak experience for a fox. i watched three little guys race around on a friend's lawn on one of my first visits to this part of maine maybe ten years ago. they were positively giddy in the early morning sun, leaping around, jumping on each other, rolling and tumbling, biting and squealing. hopefully their mom, who wasn't visible, was getting a well-deserved rest nearby.
afterthought~ if there is reincarnation and if we get at least one go round as an animal and if we get to choose, i think i might prefer to come back as an otter.
