The Albino Deer Story

My home in Woodstock, Georgia (a northwestern suburb of Atlanta) is about a mile or so from Allatoona Lake and it also is surrounded by a lot of woods, creeks, rivers, trees, kudzu, and other green delights which makes it attractive to deer and a lot of other wildlife. It is not uncommon to see deer, fox, coyotes, hawks, eagles, owls, and other similar animals. We are even starting to hear of a number of bear sightings in and around the area as the urban sprawl continues to invade the foothills of the Smokey Mountains.

It is a daily occurrence to see a number of doe and fawns camping out at night in the wooded area just off of my backyard. I saw a ten point buck the other night and he was huge. There is a creek that runs through my property that empties into Allatoona Lake, and the deer typically follow that back and forth looking for food and shelter. As they traverse, they will trigger the motion sensitive lights on my house. It is still pretty cool to go out on the deck and view them even after living in this environment since the mid 1990s. My point being, it is not odd to see deer around the Rutledge Manor.

The developers did a good job preserving the trees and the “living in the woods” feel which was one of the main reasons we decided to buy our home here in the first place. It is a wonderful respite from the pace and troubles of the big city but close enough to access it for work and fun. Over the years, I have had to dodge a number of deer in our development which is built around several golf courses. As a matter of fact, I got nailed by a deer once driving by the golf course at night. So, you need to keep your head on a swivel, especially during the Fall of the year.

What is rare is to see is a piebald or albino deer (also known as a white deer). I do not hunt but after the story I am about to tell you I asked a number of friends that do, and they confirmed that they are very rare to see and not many have had the pleasure to see one. The rarest is a completely white deer with pink eyes (albino). The piebald deer is usually what you see which is a white tail deer, but it has a lot of white deformities that make it look almost complete white.

While this is not intended to be an episode of Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom (dating myself) from the wilds of Atlanta, it is some back story which will give today’s blog a little more “oomph” (technical term) as you read about the day yours truly had my one and only encounter with this rare beast in my Albino Deer Story.

But First…A Joke:

A father and his daughter are outside Ohio Stadium, and the girl asks for a T-shirt that says, “Wolverines Suck.” The dad hesitates, but says, “You can have the shirt if you promise never to say those words.” “That’s right,” says the vendor. “Suck isn’t a very nice word.” “No,” replies the father. “I meant the word Wolverine.”

Bonus Dad Joke:

I wasn’t planning to get a brain transplant, but then I changed my mind.

A Verse to Contemplate:

I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me - Philippians 3:12

Have I Told You This One?

As many of you know, my late wife Michelle passed from Covid 19 back in August of 2021. It was a real hard time for all of her family and friends as we struggled to deal with the reality of her passing. She was loved by many, and her loss was greatly felt. As my girls and I tried to come to grips with it, the finality of it all shook us to the core and that caused a number of deep questions that direct answers were not readily available. As their Dad I wanted to keep open communication with them and tried to answer their questions to the best of my ability based on what I thought I knew, what I believe the Scriptures say, what I believe God was telling me personally, and what my heart and mind were revealing to me.

No one I know has ever gone to heaven and returned to share the experience of what it is really like. Many preachers teach on why we need to go there and not to Hell but there are not a lot of sermons that deal directly with what life in heaven is like. The Scriptures say a lot but what most people remember is that the streets are gold, and that God has gone to make a place just for us upon our acceptance of Him as our Savior. Those are not the questions that kept coming up.

When death of someone you really love becomes a reality in this earthly life it makes you wonder about very practical things. Some of the questions that came up include the following:

Hey Dad, do you think Mom is looking down on us right now?

Hey Dad, do you think Mom is thinking about us?

Hey Dad, do you think Mom is safe and happy?

You get the picture, right? Practical questions for sure but a solid answer with backup is not as easy to come up with. When those questions came up, I did my best to give my OPINION and what I was basing that on but in the end that is all it is, a tire builder’s kids opinion. I was honest but didn’t want to crush spirits because I could be wrong too.

For example. How would you answer, Hey Dad, do you think Mom is looking down on us right now?

Based on what I knew at the time and what I felt in my heart I answered… no.

The reason? From what I read in the Bible, it states that heaven is a place where there is no sadness, illness, crying, etc. If that is true, then how could anyone look down from heaven into this fallen world and not be sad or worried? That was what I thought, and they asked so I gave it to them. I don’t think that is what they wanted to hear but I reminded them that I really don’t know the full answer and that I don’t believe anyone on earth knows for sure and that I could be wrong. It was something that I have dedicated myself to finding out the best answer I can and that I fully expect that the day He calls me to my eternal home that all my questions will be answered and/or I will be so happy that I won’t care anymore.

As we sat around on another particular evening an observation came up. The girls were talking and came to a consensus that they had noticed seeing a lot of deer and hummingbirds since Michelle passed and they asked me, Hey Dad, do you think Mom is somehow sending her thoughts and love to us through these animals and birds? I had noticed the same things but was it something I wanted to believe to make myself feel better? Was it trying to spiritualize common events to help grieve in a better way? Was I going nuts?

I thought about it and being an analytic I tried to provide a bottom-line answer. I said that I did not think that was happening but agreed with them that these appearances seemed to be happening much more than normal. All of those there gave their feedback as well and the answers were all along the continuum. Again, I did not have a definitive answer. My mind told me one thing and my heart wanted to believe another. I left that night and while driving back to my house I felt a sadness that I was not able to provide the answers that I felt they wanted.

I was pretty deep in my thoughts about all of this, and the car seemed to be going on its own as I pulled into my subdivision. I saw something out of the corner of my eye as I turned in and hit the brakes. The car came to a sudden stop and right in front of me was an Albino Deer! I swear! It just stood in front of my car and didn’t even try to move. I sat for what felt like an hour just looking at it in disbelief. Finally, it slowly started to move out of the way keeping its eyes on me the entire time. To say I was stunned to the point of reevaluating my answer from just a few minutes ago would be a huge understatement. I got home and texted the girls what had just happened. They were equally amazed.

Wouldn’t it be just like God to send a reminder that He loves us and cares about us and sees our tears and feels our heart pains? Who knows. Like I said before it is not uncommon to see deer in my development. However, a white deer is pretty rare. I think I will choose to believe that the God that created the world and says He knows the number of hairs on each of our heads might send a white deer to cheer up a broken heart or three…. just because.

Here’s hoping you have an Albino Deer Story to tell in your life. Thanks for giving this a spin today. God Bless and keep you.

A Prayer:

Heavenly Father, remind me that my joy and peace are not dependent upon my circumstances. Empower me to abide in Your presence to experience Your unceasing joy and peace.

Book Recommendation:

The Book of Unusual Knowledge by Publications International, Ltd. (2012)

Music Recommendation:

A Wizard, A True Star by Todd Rundgren (1973)

Quote of the Day:

“Remember, today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday.” - Dale Carnegie

Cool Place to Visit:

Prescott, Arizona