Friends

I took a vacation with my friends Chani and Nay a little while ago. We rented a log house by the ocean and sat around relaxing, reading books, and watching obscene amounts of the Food Network.


Chani, who thinks the world really works like a Disney movie, dutifully left out snacks of all sorts for the various woodland critters that we supposed lived near the log house. We saw very little of this alleged wildlife for the first few days, and watched the offered snacks get eaten mostly by sea gulls and crows, which are boring because we see them all the time.

Chani kept at it. Corn was scattered on the benches in the yard with shocking regularity. carrots were strewn in the driveway, and bread, zucchini, and raspberry cobbler was left on the deck outside the sliding glass doors to the living room.

After a few days, we started to catch fleeting late-night glimpses of a bold raccoon who liked to come up onto the deck to eat. One night as we all sat in the living room watching a movie, the little raccoon showed up for his supper.


Chani was immediately enchanted, and Nay and I quietly grabbed our cameras. We paused the movie and watched the raccoon for a while. Chani promptly named him Darian.

As we sat watching, another little raccoon crept up onto the deck. Darian half-heartedly chased her away from his food dish, but she came slowly slinking back for her share. We called her Marion.

The raccoons were very well aware of our presence behind the glass, and after a few minutes I guess they decided we weren't a threat. We could walk around and talk, and they stayed up on the deck, glancing casually our way every now and again.


Chani sat down on the floor by the sliding glass doors and cooed about how cute they were while Nay and I wandered around with our cameras. The food eventually ran out, and Darian started to explore the rest of the deck. He sniffed the barbeque next to the sliding glass doors, and Chani, mesmerized, pressed her hand to the window.

The raccoon walked up to the glass, looked Chani in the eyes, and PRESSED HIS HAND TO THE GLASS RIGHT WHERE HERS WAS. Chani said "I love you, little raccoon", and started crying.


Sadly, I suspect this will nurture Chani's unhealthy belief that real life really is just like a Disney movie.