The Flame

Africa, Africa land of the free

Far horizons, upon far horizons stretching to infinity

We came searching for the spirit of the wild

We found Mother Earth's creatures living in harmony with man

Oh what a wonderful site to watch

Two leopards feast on their kill of a Wildebeest two minutes old.

To see the elephants mate with their tusks

To see a large colony of baboons frolicking

Mothers with young on their backs

Others hanging on underneath her belly

To see the giraffe's, the stilt walkers of the savanna

To see the delicate spirit of the bush buck

Minding his harem of 50 doe.

To watch the Maasai herdsmen tending their flock

Of goats and cattle, dressed in colourful costumes

To share in the afternoon walk to the water hole

By two male lions and then near by

To discover a lioness and her two young cubs

Frolicking on the ground and rolling in the tall grass

Oh what a wonderful gift.

Like the bush buck whose spirit I long to touch

Before I could, I needed to know

Just how close I could move.

The artist in us is crying out for expression

It challenges us to travel into the wilderness of our soul

To sit in the bumpy land rover in waiting

To be at the right spot at the right time

Will our hearts burn to make handicrafts or lace

Fly a plane or sail a boat

Once we have lit the pilot of our hearts

The journey begins and all else follows

Anne de Nada