Deer Crossing

 

An early morning commute, headed for my office like a million times before, the

radio played and my mind, drifted from the task of driving a car and an array

of random, rambling thoughts. 

The road before me was as clear and uneventful as it had been most every day

or every week. I blinked…no change. I blinked…no change.  I blinked…a deer.

 

Time slowed, allowing me to choose a safe maneuver, avoiding the animal as it

bound across my path.  Events, still in slow-motion, took an ugly turn when the

fleeing deer, only a few feet from safety, was struck in the oncoming lane. 

Like a rag doll tossed into the air, it flipped and spun off the hood of the car,

disappearing into the heavily brushed, roadside ditch.

 

Knowing that the driver might need assistance, I drove to the nearest turn around and headed back to see if help was needed.  The car was pulled off to the side and the driver stood, angrily checking out the damage to his already crappy vehicle.  “Are you okay, do you need any help” I yelled from my half-opened door.

 

The driver, a charming man whom possessed a remarkable ability to jamb his XXL framed body into what appeared to be a T-Shirt, size boy’s medium, did not respond to me.  Instead he stared at his front-end, swore three times, climbed back into the car and drove angrily away.

 

Still parked along the highway, watching the deer slayer drive off, I caught sight of something moving in the brush beside me.  It was the deer, struggling to climb up the side hill and run to safety.

 

My heart sank when I saw that the doe’s efforts were limited to its front legs only, as both rear limbs were snapped, nearly in half.  

 

Standing in the roadside ditch with traffic whizzing by, I called my office and asked my partner to call the police to send someone to come and put this animal down.  Minutes later, she called back to tell me that this was not a priority and help was not available…or was it.

 

Looking up the hill, I watched the wounded deer continue to struggle to find refuge deeper in the woods, away from the frightening sounds of the highway and some guy wearing a suit and tie, staring at her.  I just couldn’t walk away, because aside from her unusable back legs, she seemed strong.  Strong enough to suffer for days before time would take her.

 

My half-century on this planet has taught me that when in over your head, look upward and ask for help.  And so I did.  Not for me, but for this life that events had crippled and for a long suffering I prayed would not take place.

 

Now, dress pants be damned, kneeling in the dirt, I asked God to provide the help that I could not.  That this life, no lesser than any other, would be taken and her struggle here, brought to a kind, if not loving end.

 

The next few minutes were for my witness only and they will remain with me as one of the nicest gifts I’ve ever been allowed.  The deer turned away from her uphill climb and with only her front legs, pulled herself across the brush, moving in my direction.  Her dangling hind legs followed her as she made her way over the 15 or 20 feet, coming to a stop within my reach.

 

The human in me didn’t want to scare her, but extending my hands to support her head, seemed the obvious thing to do.  She allowed my reach and rested her face in my hands and her gaze fixed on, if not into me.  Again, I asked that given the injuries and my lack of resources, or a gun, that she be taken now and not later. 

 

With a few puffs of air from a soft, leathery nose, my prayer was granted. 

 

Back into my car, I again called the office to tell my partner what had happened and how we both, the deer and I, were blessed with something truly amazing.   

.