Getting to know my hungry neighbors

What's lithe and agile, with really big ears, really big eyes, four stomachs, and the appetite of a teenaged boy?

Black-tailed deer.

Here is my deer friend who, along with five other members of her crew, was dining in my front yard this afternoon. When I stepped outside for a photo, they barely acknowledged my presence, and continued dining with conspicuous nonchalance. Rather than turning to run, they approached me, with caution, in hopes I might be offering something tastier than the grass they were consuming.

The deer's eyes, black and fragile, stare back
and stop her breathing.
The breeze drops.
Light shines every leaf.
She enters that other world,
her feet stone still on the path.
The deer stands pat and takes her in.

excerpt from the poem, "Deer, 6:00AM" by Sarah Getty