Gary Lark
It was somewhere between
dusk and dark
on a road off another road
when I saw a blur
coming full tilt
up along the river
growing into a deer.
I thought it was going to run right into us.
As it briefly gathered its power
to clear the car
I could see velvet covered horns,
its determined line of grace.
We had stopped
to figure out where we were,
headlights still on,
door cracked
for the dome light
on our map,
a soft cottonwood smell
filling the night.
I looked up
to see where the color changes
from side hair to belly hair,
the fine texture
forming runs and swirls
and legs passing over.
Also by Gary Lark
The Advice is Free / Snake Road
