After the Storm, a Meeting (originally published in Philadelphia Poets)

A broken portion of the trail,

the overflow had washed away the pebbles,
exposed the fabric intended to encase
the base of soil, the clean red clay.
The tarp that had been specially placed,
here and now it is frayed, torn.
Or did an underground stream burst
through the red clay base?

Thick layer of sand meant
to hold the earth in place for the path,
exploded, dispersed,
From the rush of pressure?
From within or without?
No matter,
an artery ruptured.

The doe did not startle or so it seemed.
I thought I felt my heart stop for a second.
Barely five feet apart,
locked in a true and focused gaze,
utter calm
but entirely alert.

(the last two lines of this poem come from Larry Rosenberg, on p. 81 of Breath by Breath, the Liberating Practice of Insight Meditation.)