Dogwood days

Dogwood are now in full bloom on Roundtop. Today, unfortunately, is cloudy so you can’t see the full effect of half a dozen or so blooming dogwood trees. Still, even a gray morning can’t completely obscure their beauty.

Spring has reached that point where the grass is such a bright green it almost hurts the eye to look at it. Once the shade begins to fade and darken, I lose interest. This intense shade doesn’t last very long.

For the past few mornings, a herd of 8 deer have walked past the cabin, just before sunrise, a few feet from a door or a window. They move slowly, tasting their way through the forest. They are quiet, with only an occasional footfall to give them away. Mostly, they ignore me even when I am outside. Sometimes one will look up and watch me for a few seconds to make sure I’m not doing anything they consider dangerous.

If Baby Dog hears or sees them she launches into a frenzied warning. She can’t ignore them, for some reason, though the deer are starting to almost ignore her. She makes them nervous, though, and they usually move a little bit quicker past the door. Sometimes one of the younger ones will flick its tail, but none of them do more than that. Perhaps that’s what frustrates Baby Dog so. She’s barking with that deep-throated warning for all she’s worth, and the deer can barely be bothered. I expect she’d be happier if her warning scattered them like dry leaves in a sudden breeze.