Winter Deer

By Zary Fekete

The town of Cokato is almost exactly halfway across the state of Minnesota on Highway 12. The name Cokato comes from a Siouan word meaning “amid”, helpful for orienting the original indigenous travelers across the territory many years ago before the railroad was built. Despite the encroachment of modernity, the land in central Minnesota still maintains its original shape from when the glacier retreated 12,000 years ago. Once upon a time the ice across this land was almost one mile thick. Now it is only during the winters that some semblance of the state’s ancient, icy past is resurrected.

There is a deer refuge near Cokato where hunting is restricted and where the tawny brown animals can be seen throughout the year. It is during the winter, however, when the deer are most noticeable. They huddle together under the clutches of forest during the coldest winter days…but that is not today. Today the sun is out, and the bright rays have warmed the air to just above zero, a temperature that feels positively tropical after the last month of minus twenty-degree weather.

I can see them now, just beyond my office window, gathering on the slight slope between the trees and the lower slough. They return to this patch of land every bright day because of how the afternoon winter sun warms that particular spot. The older animals are content to lounge in the white drifts, but the younger deer play together, completely child-like, chasing each other around the tree trunks and snacking on the under-snow vegetation their parents uncovered for them.

Last week a coyote visited the woods. I knew this before the animal arrived, because, in a quick flash, all the deer were up and running, finally hiding themselves in the forest to the north of the swamp. The coyote found nothing but a well-trampled bit of snowy field. Once the doggy creature left the scene it wasn’t long before the deer were back, enjoying their place in the sun.

There is a comforting regularity to their presence outside my window. I know they enjoy the winter sun just as I do; a welcome spot of brightness during these short winter days. In fact, when the sun breaks through the winter clouds my first instinct is to go to my window and let the rays fall on my face. And then I always turn to see the deer in the distance doing the same.

Zary Fekete grew up in Hungary. He has a debut novella (Words on the Page) out with DarkWinter Lit Press and a short story collection (To Accept the Things I Cannot Change: Writing My Way Out of Addiction) out with Creative Texts. He enjoys books, podcasts, and many many many films. Twitter and Instagram: @ZaryFekete Bluesky:zaryfekete.bsky.social