Dawn’s light
And they flashed past a stand of thinning trees.
Their tails white punctuation
At the edge of the road
the first to emerge
their leader, looking back.
It was then I knew why I couldn’t leave
For a paradise of pavement
And the bliss of teens on an M3 bus.
Contagiously spreading happiness
Here I was almost alone.
Without zoos or museums
But families of deer like these
And birds come to visit for the season
Roberta Gould taught Romance languages at Brookyln College for 20 years. Her 15 books of poetry include Woven Lightning, Only Rock, Not by Blood Alone, Pacing the Wind, Dream Yourself Flying, and more, including two books in Spanish.