I've always had an open mind when it comes to the mysterious creatures that might wander our world.

It's partly because I've always been inquisitive by nature, and partly because of the lessons my mother

instilled in me about respecting nature and being aware of my surroundings.

She taught me to listen to the animals,

believing they would alert us if something unusual lurked nearby.

This story takes me back to when I was a teenager,

visiting my dad's small hometown in Texas for a family reunion.

The town was so tiny that you could stroll through its central part in less than an hour.

Most of our relatives lived further out, each with an acre or more of land around their homes,

providing privacy and tranquility.

That evening, we joined my dad's extensive family for a hoe-down near the town's edge.

People were dancing, drinking, and reveling in the festivities,

while my brother, one of our cousins, her friend and I, hung out on the sidelines.

We engaged in typical teenage chatter, discussing school crushes and the like.

Our attention drifted towards the outskirts of the party, where a fence bordered the area. The fence separated the yard from the scrubland on the edge of town. The night had fallen, and the only

illumination came from the lights on the fence poles, casting eerie shadows around. As I gazed into the

distance, I noticed something unusual, an object partially obscured by a small tree.

It stood out because it remained still, unaffected by the breeze that rustled the other foliage.

I pointed it out to my brother and cousin, who also saw it. We couldn't help but be curious.

One of us suggested it might be a coyote, but we quickly realized

that it was too massive to be one. Curiosity, and perhaps a bit of foolishness got the better of us,

and we cautiously approached the fence. We were now only 20 yards away from it, and this mysterious

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