power and grace

As I did my morning stretches, Mary tapped urgently on the sliding glass, sending me to peer out into the predawn grey. She was calling my attention to a bobcat, sauntering by our patio and headed toward the mountains through our green belt. I crept carefully out the door to see him better. I had always pictured bobcats as small and stocky, and was surprised by his muscular gait as seen from behind. He was exactly the miniaturized frame of a lion -- shoulder and hip bones pushed up against his spotted fur, the overlarge paws padding across the grass, a picture of nonchalance and stored energy. This was no oversized housecat but an undersized puma. Wow.