With relief I returned to the forest today. The heat has finally abated, and the bugs are much more manageable. I sorely missed my walks, but I could only bear a few sporadic jaunts in the woods here and there over the last month before being driven out by the bugs or heat. Even under tree cover, which is always cooler, it has been very hot. The change has finally come, though.
I chanced upon a deer path as I was walking. Have you ever seen one? They are usually very much thinner than a
human path, but there is clearly a path laid out. The trampled ground is not quite as flat as
in a human path either, but again, it is clearly noticeable. There are usually small tree branches or bush
twigs in the way here and there, which would be annoying and would be cleared
for a human path, but which the deer don’t mind at all. I usually just keep on walking when I come to
a deer path, but today I decided to follow it to see where it led.
 |
| The end of the path? |
It twisted and turned a bit in a very inhuman-like way. Though human forest paths turn here and
there, they seem to do it in a different way than the deer paths. Humans take the easiest terrain; the deer
don’t always do so. So the first thing I
noticed was that I was walking in a way I wouldn’t ordinarily walk. It just somehow felt different. I was taking the path that made the most
sense to the deer, and I discovered that they think very differently from us. They’re clearly not in a rush, and clear
roads and paths mean nothing to them.
In some areas the path seemed more trampled than others, and
in other areas I almost lost it once or twice but was able to pick it up
again. Alas, I could not use my nose to
help me out, which is a severe handicap on a deer path. They would know it blindfolded just by the
scent. I had to rely on my eyes, which
are inferior as compared to the sense of smell that a deer has. Eventually, the path seemed to stop or
perhaps lightly bear this way or that. I
wasn’t sure. I decided to go no further.
And what did I find at the end of the path? Nothing, of course. At least nothing that a human might
understand. There was a beautiful tree
growing sideways for a bit and then upward, and it was covered in a brilliant
green moss, but I doubt that was the goal for the deer. That was a reward for me but certainly not
for the deer. In any event, this doesn’t
mean that the path didn’t lead anywhere or that there wasn’t great treasure at
the end of it. In fact, I’m certain it
did lead to great treasure, beauty, and comfort. But it was not for human eyes, which were all
I had with me at the time.
