I pass this deer on my daily outdoor walk. One of his antlers is missing. His paint is chipped. He is broken.
“Why does his owner keep him? Does she not realize he is broken?” I quietly mumbled to myself the first time I noticed the fake deer.
The second day of my walk, I checked every tree on my path to find this deer. I couldn’t find him.
The third day, I found him. “He is broken. He should be thrown away,” I thought to myself.
“Wait. What do I keep that is broken?” I asked myself.
Chipped dishes sit in my cupboard. Torn towels sit in my bathrooms. I still grieve over broken friendships I doubt will ever be repaired. Broken promises by others bounce in my head. Tiny holes are in some of my shirts.
Yet I hold onto all these broken things. I’m not too different than the owner of this broken deer. I hope someday she or he will be outside when I walk pass this deer. “Why do you keep this deer?” I can then ask them.
I will look for this deer each day I walk outside and let him remind me that I need to let go of some broken things I hold onto too tightly.
What broken things do you need to let go?
I’m posting every Tuesday as part of the weekly Slice of Life over at Two Writing Teachers.
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