“Doe a deer, a female deer”
I love fawns. I love the spots they have on their backs and their soft wet noses. I love their spindly little legs and their tiny little tails.
Growing up, my parents would take me to Maine and we would visit “York Wild Animal Kingdom” Reflecting upon it as an adult I think it is a travesty to put animals into captivity and ask them to be put on show. Then however, I loved the experience of getting a handful of deer corn from the bubble gum type machine for 5 cents and letting the fawns eat from my 5 year old hands. Old home movies record me dressed in my 1960’s style corduroy pants (with matching hat and coat) holding out my hand in delight as these precious creatures would angle for the bounty of my offering.
Mommy would call my name and I would turn to look at daddy busily recording my every move on his Kodak movie camera. The images locked in faded color of little animals, now long gone and my delight at their attention to my meager fare. My hand would reach through the fence petting their soft heads while secretly wishing I could wrap my arms around their necks in a loving child’s embrace.
Deer have always been my totem animal. Full of grace and lithe of movement their keen sense of instinct makes it difficult to capture the wild ones on film. When I was a child and my dad decided to become a hunter, he went out to the woods in the fall a few years in a row. Each time before he left I worried he might spot a deer and kill it, but daddy later admitted he would never have been able to do such a thing, even if one had ever been seen. He used to say he was a real “softie” and knew it would hurt me tremendously if he killed one of these beautiful creatures.
Memories fade, but can also remind us of innocence.
Last year Keith and I were working on the property which backs up to a protected wildlife area. One day while standing in the office, we spotted a mother doe jumping from behind the trees and across the driveway into the woods on the opposite side. Behind the doe, two spotted fawns followed leaping across to catch up with their mummy. It was a true gift of beauty. I had the feeling I had as a child, wishing to have my arms around their beautiful necks in embrace.
Deer must be aware of their surroundings at all times. Their keen sense of their environment, the ability to make quick decisions, the beauty and grace of their movements and a loving, innocent character are symbols of beauty to me.
A return to innocence: the blessing of maturity.
I love fawns. I love the spots they have on their backs and their soft wet noses. I love their spindly little legs and their tiny little tails.
Growing up, my parents would take me to Maine and we would visit “York Wild Animal Kingdom” Reflecting upon it as an adult I think it is a travesty to put animals into captivity and ask them to be put on show. Then however, I loved the experience of getting a handful of deer corn from the bubble gum type machine for 5 cents and letting the fawns eat from my 5 year old hands. Old home movies record me dressed in my 1960’s style corduroy pants (with matching hat and coat) holding out my hand in delight as these precious creatures would angle for the bounty of my offering.
Mommy would call my name and I would turn to look at daddy busily recording my every move on his Kodak movie camera. The images locked in faded color of little animals, now long gone and my delight at their attention to my meager fare. My hand would reach through the fence petting their soft heads while secretly wishing I could wrap my arms around their necks in a loving child’s embrace.
Deer have always been my totem animal. Full of grace and lithe of movement their keen sense of instinct makes it difficult to capture the wild ones on film. When I was a child and my dad decided to become a hunter, he went out to the woods in the fall a few years in a row. Each time before he left I worried he might spot a deer and kill it, but daddy later admitted he would never have been able to do such a thing, even if one had ever been seen. He used to say he was a real “softie” and knew it would hurt me tremendously if he killed one of these beautiful creatures.
Memories fade, but can also remind us of innocence.
Last year Keith and I were working on the property which backs up to a protected wildlife area. One day while standing in the office, we spotted a mother doe jumping from behind the trees and across the driveway into the woods on the opposite side. Behind the doe, two spotted fawns followed leaping across to catch up with their mummy. It was a true gift of beauty. I had the feeling I had as a child, wishing to have my arms around their beautiful necks in embrace.
Deer must be aware of their surroundings at all times. Their keen sense of their environment, the ability to make quick decisions, the beauty and grace of their movements and a loving, innocent character are symbols of beauty to me.
A return to innocence: the blessing of maturity.
2 comments:
Hey, Aley, look at you over here at Blogspot. You have joined great company, as my baby granddaughter has a blog over here, too. Thanks for the link. Maybe you can see the doe and her son who have breakfast in my back yard. He is long from being a fawn, growing antlers now. He is a lovely color, not as red as his mama.
Did you notice the link to your art at the bottom of my page?
Oh! I hope I see them!! Excting!
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