THE BEAUTY OF NATURE

The sun rises over the bay

As I awaken to the delicious aroma of coffee

Brewing over the campfire.

The birds are singing from the treetops

And a squirrel sits
On a branch of the Walnut tree
Above my head knawing on a walnut.

In the distance I see a deer —
Standing, listening, watching.

Then, the smell of scrambled eggs
fills the air;
I turn to see Diana fixing breakfast.

I look back through the trees;
the deer is gone.

Where did he go? I wonder;
Such a beautiful animal!

Then, Diana says it's time to eat.

I ask her if she'd seen the deer but
she replies, "no".

All the while I eat
I cannot stop thinking about the deer,
nature's prettiest animal.

How man can destroy such beauty
Is beyond me.

Diana pours me a steaming cup of coffee;
I take a sip and
Look back through the trees once more.
There it is again — the little dear!

I turn to tell Diana,
But when she looks up, the deer is gone again.

It was there! It was there, I say,
Trying to convince my Love that
I had indeed seen a deer.
Is it my imagination?
I begin to wonder.

Now I am trying to convince myself of
What I saw.

Before I know it
Diana's eyes are widened and she is
Looking over my shoulder, pointing.

I turn around, and what is behind me?
The little fawn!

I am stunned as I let the animal
Sniff my hand and check things out.

Are you hungry? I ask
As if expecting an answer.
All I have is scrambled eggs, I tell the baby deer.

I place 2 forkfuls of scrambled eggs
In my hand, and guess what?!
The deer eats the eggs!

I turn to look at Diana
Who is passed out on the ground;
I chuckle.

The beauty of nature! I say to myself.
Originally published in 1987.