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To Her Fawn


Whitetail Fawn courtesy of Forest Wander

Dear little deer,
Curl up and nest.
Mama must eat,
And you must rest.
Dear little deer,
Lie still, right here.
In this nook you’ve
Nothing to fear.
Among the flowers
That dot the field,
Your spots will bloom
And form a shield.
Among the bees
That dart and drone,
You’ve many friends.
You’re not alone.
Dear little deer,
Stay here and wait.
I’ll be right back.
I won’t be late.
Before the sky
Becomes bright blue,
I will be here
To nuzzle you.

As I was reading more of the poetry in the National Geographic Book of Animal Poetry, I noticed a few peaceful poems with the same form–quatrains of four syllables. I think there is something about the perfect symmetry and balance of these lines that makes them so stable and reassuring. I tried it in the poem above, which gave me plenty of grief this week. Sometimes, I wonder if a poem just doesn’t want to be.

For more Poetry Friday, go to Think Kid, Think!

(c) 2012 Elizabeth Ehrenfest Steinglass, all rights reserved

3 replies
  1. Author Amok
    Author Amok says:

    Beautiful poem, Liz! The fawn curling up reminded me of a fox poem featured on Writer’s Almanac this week — the terrible vulnerability of a sleeping animal. I’m glad the mama comes back.

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