Scary Beauty

Chief Hudd, our campus safety hero, sends email reports of the crime on campus. These are quite helpful in heightening my senses and giving words to my wild imagination when I am walking to my car in the dark. The dark has always frightened me; I can remember retrieving frozen ravioli from the freezer in the basement. I would carefully and slowly tip toe, quietly to the freezer and grab the ravioli. Slam the freezer lid and make a run for it, sprinting up the stairs to safety.

This evening I was walking to my car when I heard rustling. I saw a flash of white about 20 feet from me. Are these silly college kids streaking again? Or, is there a lightening fast predator waiting to do things to me that Chief Hudd will have to report to the entire campus? I gripped my keys tight, ready to use them as a weapon if need be. (That is actually not true. You know how when you are super scared and you grab whoever is closest? Well my keys were closest.) I considered my options: A.) running back to the office that may be locked, B.) running to my car up hill, and C.) acting normally. Due to poor choice of shoes and two bags full of work, I chose C. (Maybe guys invented heels so that they could catch us, ladies.)

I kept walking. Then, I saw them. I saw their white tails flash and heard their rustling as they moved. I was within feet of such beautiful creatures. It was breath-taking. The male's antlers acted as an enchanting wand, creating a majestic moment.