Coyote

There were no other campers
at the lava beds park in late September.
The heat of the day began to ebb.

Then a she coyote walked calmly

into our campsite and jumped up on the table.

Silent, regal, but she looked at me expectantly.

I fetched a package of hamburger out of the cooler

that was beginning to smell suspicious.

Put it on the table in front of her.

She took a few bites then carried the rest

to the foot of a juniper and buried it.

A cache for later? Or perhaps an opinion

about the quality of the meat.

In the morning it was gone.