I took a walk today, in the woods along the river where I like to walk. A man leaving as I was entering the woods told me the deer were really active today, that rut had obviously begun. I smiled, anticipating seeing deer everywhere, maybe even seeing a couple bucks facing off. How cool would that be?
I wasn’t surprised when I saw no deer right away; the entry area is well-traversed by humans and dogs. I fully expected to have to wait ’til further along my path, on the tiny footpath at the river’s edge instead of on the bridle trail, to see ‘interesting animals.’ So I walked, and I walked. I walked softly, letting no step crack sticks or swish leaves, and I kept my head up and swiveling about, checking for movement.
I saw squirrels, and chipmunks, bluejays and woodpeckers and finches galore. I saw prints of deer and opossum, humans and dogs, horses and bikes. But I saw no fish, no deer, no interesting wildlife of any type or variety. Heck, I didn’t even see unusual flora!
As I returned to my car, I pondered this strange development. Nothing unusual or overtly interesting. Hmm. No “otter-grams” of any sort. (Yes, I still chuckle at that!) By this point I’m sure I was smiling like a maniac, ’cause I’m taking this as Mother Nature’s way of saying “Look, no rejections for a bit, okay? Relax.” Which is really nice, since I just sent another story out into the world yesterday, bringing my current submissions out to seven. 🙂
In other, non-forest-related news: Cast of Wonders has said my story will be up ‘soon.’ Yay! (I can’t wait to hear this podcast.) I had ‘issues’ with PayPal, but now their payment has come through (double-yay!).
Everyday Magic | M. E. Garber 