When our family was young, we visited a small amusement park and petting zoo near our summer cottage, called Deer Forest. We could ride a Ferris wheel, a pint-sized train, and a miniature roller coaster, but our favorite was mingling with the animals.
It was at Deer Forest I saw my first peacock. There were also foxes, goats, rams, wild turkeys, massive rabbits and plenty of deer. One quarter bought a Dixie cup of pellets, and I’ll never forget the soft noses that snoofed into my palm to get their treats.
Back then, it was difficult to see these animals in the wild, but today the tables have turned. Instead of paying an entrance fee to get close to a deer, most of us are trying to figure out how to co-exist with them as they boldly search for food in our yards.
One morning Jack and I came across six deer drinking at our beach creek, and I couldn’t hold him against his desire to give chase. Of course he couldn’t catch them. Each deer-leap equates to 20 Jack-steps, and his thick body was no match. He even ran into a tree once, in his effort to zigzag behind a nimble deer.
The abundance of deer has become a cause for people-frustration. These animals boldly square off with cars on country roads and cause accidents, some with serious consequences. Homeowners have put up electric fences, hung nuggets of soap or garlic, or put up chicken-wire barriers to protect their gardens. They’ve researched and planted flowers that have a bitter taste, in their efforts to keep landscaping intact. Although the deer used to eat only the blossoms, now they consume the stems and leaves, too. Even hosta plants, never of interest before this year, are being chewed into sticks.
Yesterday while driving on an expressway, I spotted a beautiful buck (similar to the picture below) walking slowly across a railroad bridge over the highway. Every driver looked up as he flew under the concrete at 70 mph, and I nearly rear-ended a truck while staring at the deer in my rear-view mirror. He was sporting a giant set of antlers and though he was in danger, didn’t seem to have a care in the world.
I talked to God about this today, not asking how to help the deer as much as what he wanted me to learn from the situation. And tonight I think I’ve heard from him. Though there is a limit to the resources of the earth, there’s no “bottom” to who God is, how he works, or what he can do. His wherewithal is unbounded, and his power is inexhaustible.
Although watching hungry deer is disturbing, they, too, are within the scope of God’s control. If he wants me to do something for them, he’ll let me know. Until then, my clear instructions are to meditate on his limitlessness and to thank him for it.
”Great is our Lord and mighty in power; his understanding has no limit.” (Psalm 147:5)
Although I’ve eaten deer meat and liked it, it is such a thrill to see them in the ‘natural’, it’s hard to fathom how anyone could kill them. They are beautiful animals.
Hi Margaret, we still have deer in our backyard all the time. I actually had six deer running towards me on a road this winter as I was on my way to work early in the morning. I was the only car on the road and I didn’t know what to do. I wasn’t sure if they were going to run into me or go around me and then suddenly they all jumped a fence at the last minute and stood very stately on the lawn in front of the house like they were meant to be there. I wish I could have pulled my phone out fast enough to get a picture.
But my favorite memory of the deer in our area was seeing six of them lying down under our swing set during a huge thunderstorm one summer. Their instinct to trust the Creator during the storm to stay out in the open and get down on the ground was such a blessing to me. I realized that my natural instinct during a storm in life is to hide, run away, anything but be still. It was so cool to watch them stay still as God turned his flashlight on and off in our sky during that storm. Be still and know that I am God.
Thank you for daily directing us to the Lord for our concerns and needs. May He continue to bless and use you for His glory.
I was born in benton harbor michigan & went to lake michigan catholic school for 1-3rd grade. We used to go to “Deer Forest” every year, just before summer break in the end of may. I used 2 love going there every year from age 5 through age 7. It was the greatest place for a kid to get to be around all those anomals & yes i used to buy the ice cream cones full of deer treats & have the deer snorting in your hand as it gobbled down the food !!! It would tickle your hand with the soft fuzzy nose of the deer !!! I was thinking of “Deer Forest” alot lately after my 50th birthday,and the death of a dear friend’s father & thinking how many decades it’s been since i had been there ! So i googled “deer forest” 2 see if it was still around & wham ! it came up to my surprise ! Sad 2 say we moved out 2 “Berrien Springs,Michigan, out into the country. The first time we went out 2 see where we were going to live….and the first thing we saw was a huge buck with a giant rack of antlers & 2 other female deer. I knew the differance between male & female deer from going 2 “Deer Forest” and it was 2 funny are new neighbors out in Berrien Springs Michigan had peacocks, again I knew them because of deer forest !!! I only went one more time after we moved out 2 berrien springs,but we started going to the “Berrien County Youth Fair” & we would see thousands of animals there ! I am a nurse now & live in west palm beach, florida. I try 2 get back 2 michigan when I can, last time was summer 2012 It’s funny how some place like deer forest can have such an impact on my career ! It made me want 2 take care of people & animals. I miss that place so much it hurts !!! Such great memories !!! Siged Mark A. Schweizer….Missing my childhood places !!!