Winter deer are all around / Poem: Whither thou goest

Deer prints thru my front garden - double-click for close-up

WHITHER THOU GOEST

at this late hour
I walk across lawns hidden by snow
a bowl of neighborly popcorn in my arms
when suddenly a lone creature stands opposite
immovable unplayful unyielding deadly
I’m woman alone
no longer of the suburbs but
out on the plains without my tribe
is it jackal or lion?
steady, I will not turn back but go forward
accepting my fate
under the stars
even as I’m torn to bits
recognizable by my red scarf
but no monster awaits
simply a deer
and another beside her
small, white tailed, nestled with ineffable belonging
against the big ‘un
here, let me feed you
toss handfuls of popcorn
toward the resolute intruders
who once owned our land till
we swallowed their forest without
a single tear
the warm popcorn bounces on the iced-over snow
they saunter away unmoved
i, chastened schoolgirl, mount with
one stride the big ‘un
hold her tight and feel the shiver of
haunches beneath my thighs
kiss the place between her ears:
we will make a life together in your land
whither thou goest
the leaves brush my cheek roughly.