When the rain stopped this morning, I went for a hike up the hill to see the deer.
It always amazes me that these large wild animals can make a living in this thoroughly suburbanized town. Usually, but not always, I see them in a little two or three-acre park atop a steep hill in a posh neighborhood full of big houses that would do very nicely for hotels. Sometimes they come out of the park and hang out on people’s front lawns.
How do they do it? True, when they’re in the little wooded park and they’re not moving, they’re almost impossible to see. But they’re surrounded by a residential neighborhood full of cars, guys on riding mowers, etc. Somehow God provides for them.
You’ll notice, in this video, that someone is tossing little apples to the deer, which is probably why they’re in his back yard. It’s nice, to feed the deer, but it isn’t wise. Get them too used to interacting with people, and it will abate their natural caution which they need to survive.
I love to see the deer that somehow manage to live in the middle of Suburbia. I pray there will always be a place for them, and am surprised that there still is. The earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof… (Psalm 24:1)
We’re blessed to live in a rural area with a park across the street and an escarpment behind us that’s a designated nature preserve so we have lots of wild animals – deer, squirrels, bunnies, chipmunks, hawks, owls, eagles, foxes and more. One of the joys of life is watching God’s creation and I enjoy feeding the squirrels and bunnies in winter. The squirrels come and sit on a chair on our patio and look in the sliding glass door until they’re noticed because they know the peanuts are on the way 🙂 And in summer the chipmunks come and sit in my hand to eat – and to stuff their little cheeks with enough to store for winter. Did you know bunnies also love peanuts?