Unscheduled Meetings: Life-Changing Encounters with Wildlife from Around the Globe

UNSCHEDULED MEETINGS describes the author’s personal experiences in encounters, all unexpected, with some of the most startling wild animals on several continents. Examples are a face-to-face meeting with a bull elephant on a riverside trail in Africa and the sudden discovery, one early morning, that she was closely following a mountain lion on a ridge top in the Sierra foothills. The author could easily have been killed in some meet-up instances but was never threatened. When a comfort zone between the animal and the person is respected by both, they can observe and learn about one another without fear on either side. Up to this point our understanding of wildlife has been very limited, and recent observations demonstrate that animals, from domestic to wild, have unusual powers and capabilities that have thus far defied scientific understanding. The underlying theme of the book is that humanity and the earth itself needs wild species—which usually manage their own numbers well if not interfered with by humans—for the well-being of all. Species are vanishing rapidly because of the war we are committing upon them and our environment. The book has an introduction, followed by twenty-five essays that can be read in any order, and a conclusion