Francis (the deer) Visits St. Francis (the statue)
By Agnes Montano
Not all Meher Baba’s guests at Meher Mount come in human form.
When my husband Juan Mendez and I were caretaking at Meher Mount, a yearling buck visited on a daily basis. He would spend most of the day leisurely resting in a spot behind the Caretaker Quarters.
Every day, around midmorning, he would quietly appear. The young buck would nibble at the plants around the Visitor Center. And then he would lay down behind the house with his back against the wall, facing a statue of St. Francis in the garden.
FRANCIS (the deer) settles quietly facing a statue of St. Francis in a garden at Meher Mount: (Photo: Agnes Montano, 2023)
The yearling would stay there until late afternoon — sleeping, preening, and licking his legs.
Occasionally, he would get up, nibble at the grass and plants some more, and then return to his safe place.
FRANCIS (the deer) looks inside the Visitor Center at Meher Mount checking out the photos of Meher Baba (or at least that’s what we think). (Photo: Agnes Montano, 2023)
Francis — as we started calling the deer — was not frightened by our presence.
He never looked at us warily through the glass sliding doors, nor dart away when we were doing tasks around the Visitor Center.
One day Francis ventured onto the veranda. He nuzzled against one of the glass doors in the reception area. Then he seemed to look straight at Meher Baba’s photos hanging on the wall.
He pressed his nose hard against the door, as if wanting to come inside.
The gentle nature of this deer was an endearing reminder of the connections we – animals, plants and trees – share with the Divine and how God expresses Himself in all living beings.
Note
St. Francis of Assisi (1182-1226) was one of Meher Baba's four favorite Christian saints. Meher Baba visited Assisi in 1932 as part of His universal spiritual work.
His other favorite Christian saints were: Saint Theresa of Avila, Catherine of Siena, and Saint Augustine. Meher Baba said the four places in Europe connected with great spiritual work were St. Mark's in Venice, a place on the Ligurian coast in Italy, Assisi in Italy, and Avila in Spain.