Among Lions

 

With my soul among lions,

I walk the dusky chambers of my heart,

following the dreamways 
cast there, like a spell,
by the pages of my lifetime's
many books.

I tarry there, long evenings

before sleep - light softly falling,
the only sound the quiet turning

of the page. A cheetah cries in the bush,

an elephant treads heavily

to the pond to drink.

And in the amber glow of sunset,

a lion king lies down upon

the highest point of land,

where Finch-Hatton was laid to rest,
those many moons ago,

when all the Masai warriors came to dance

his farewell, and
one of the great love stories
came to an end,
yet is remembered still.

for Shay's Word List, which led me to the Africa of my dreams, experienced in the many books I have read, and movies watched, about that beloved place. My romantic heart (which survived my less-than-romantic life), loved Karen Blixen's Out of Africa. She wrote the Masai reported that lions came in the amber glow of sunset to lie on Finch-Hatton's grave in the years that followed. I Dreamed of Africa by Kiki Gallman, is another beautiful read (and movie).