with hooves always placed on firm ground

Simile
By: N. Scott Momaday

What did we say to each other
that now we are as the deer
who walk in single file
with heads high
with ears forward
with eyes watchful
with hooves always placed on firm ground
in whose limbs there is latent flight

This is a poem which I just recently discovered in my English class, we had to pick out a poem to recite to the class, and I tryed to find something that related to me, after reading through pages of poems this one stuck out, the imagery came right into my head, I wasent even sure what it was about first, but somehow I really enjoyed it. I read it in front of my class, its very short but still has alot of power. I think I want to try and create some type of illustration for it, since the imagery it put in my head is what attracted me to it.
The last two lines are still alittle bit up in the air with me, I have an idea of what they mean, but I could be totally wrong. I tryed looking it up online for what other people had to say, not to much luck yet though.

Here is someone else's interpretation of the last two lines...
"The hooves ready to take flight…you can't work things out if you're always too afraid to face things, if you're always ready to run away…."
It confuses me though because it doesent exactly say hooves ready to take flight.