Deer Season
every morning deer
leave the woods through my garden
on the way to the lake with their spotted fawns
every morning they pause
to nibble on the tall grass at the side of the drive
as the little ones gather around
every morning I see them
and I adjust the focus and aim of my camera
to capture
a little piece of their
wild souls
Sunday Morning
I stepped outside to turn the sprinkler on in the garden as she was walking through the yard. I startled her. She hid behind a scraggly shrub in the woods,afraid, but still a little curious.She stopped there; still; and stared at me pointing my camera at her pretty face. Realizing (I hope) that I meant no harm, she walked away slowly into the woods.
Monday
I saw the babies outside through the window, three of them, chewing on the tall grass. I slowly and quietly picked up my camera, setting the exposure and focus distance based on a guess before opening the front door as silently as possible. Barefoot, I tiptoed out on the drive trying to stay out of sight. They saw me anyway. They were not afraid. The one in front even stamped his (her?) foot at me a few times. Then their mother came out of the woods and they dutifully followed her downthe unpaved road toward the lake.
Wednesday
I saw the mother first. She turned and saw me and stood there so resolutely, I suspected the fawns were near. She snuck a quick glance at the woods, and I knew I was right. The first one stepped out awkwardly, looking back at his siblings, not noticing me. Then the other two appeared. One of them noticed his mother staring up the hill and followed her gaze, finding me. The bold one, from Monday? Maybe. He (she?) was very slow to break eye contact with me. But eventually their mother encouraged them on; and I walked back to the house, letting them go without following.
I would like to learn how to identify them by their markings like the naturalists do. How do they do that? What varies? I don’t even know how to tell if they’re male or female unless they have their antlers. I’d like to be able to differentiate them from each other; to know each one as an individual, follow them as they grow older.
