Becoming the Coyote: Lessons from a Year of Survival

Annalise’s photography is even better than her writing. This essay reflecting on some hard times and hard lessons in 2025, and connecting them to her encounters with coyotes in her wildlife work, is a statement about resilience and adaptability, and a plan for a path forward we call can learn from.

I’ve followed Annalise for a very long time, since we were mere acquaintances in early aughts blogging networks. We’ve never been close in any sense of the word, never more than very distantly engaged with each other through the pre-web2.0 era and that only briefly, but I’ve always enjoyed following her, as she’s claimed her life and followed her passions. She’s one of the people who, just by living her life, inspires me to keep trying in mine. It’s good to have such people tangentially in your life, not as a replacement for real and in-person connections, but as a source of admiring inspiration, someone who makes your heart say, “Good, I’m glad they’re doing well and still going, good on them,” and raise a glass in distant salute.

If you have such people in your life, who you’d never talk to but feel inspired by, raise a glass in their honor today and consider how they can inspire your life. It’s a good way to spend a Sunday morning.