THAT ANCIENT DANCE
By RIverdave Owen
February 2013
Two white-tailed deer stood on a hill
Above the new suburb
About each house were gardens of
Both vegetable and herb.
Where children played on grassy lawn
Well trimmed and evergreen
With pet dog as defender of
That great suburban dream.
Back on the hill a fawn remarked
How pleasant is this view
Let's move in for a closer look
And have ourselves a chew.
The mother doe said with alarm
It's not the way it seems
No invitation to this feast
We're held in low esteem.
By those who've come and settled on
This land that's been our home
These humans now consider us
A nuisance where we roam.
And so they want to skewer us
Right in their own backyard
With urban archers showing no
Indigenous regard.
So what's to be the remedy
The fawn asked with a frown
What legacy will humans leave
For this ol' Durham town?
A place of grim efficiency
That's quick to extirpate
Or one of deep humility
With wIldlife to relate?
The doe then spoke her litany
Of common sense advice
For those who care to live in peace
Resolved to pay the price.
Let gardens have an eight foot fence
To keep my yearlings out
And let them slow their speeding car
As they commute their route.
Some eucalyptus oil applied
On legs would help protect
From tics and chiggers lying low
That commonly infect.
And last but not the least of all
Let humans take a chance
Embrace coyotes in their midst
To dance that ancient dance …
Photo by RIverdave: albino fawn photographed from Riverdave's screened in back porch
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