Dusk was gathering as we drove south on the dirt road, shadows lengthening over the land, turning from savannah to brush land, ancient Baobab trees connecting earth and sky. As I rode with watering eyes from the intensity of the wind blowing over them, suddenly a complete lanky image flashed by me. Head, eyes, rosettes, supple, strong body perfectly draped over the tree, with tail dropping below... Leopard! Passing the message quickly forward to the driver, we stopped, reversing slowly, seeking through the darkening light for her magnificence.
She waited, seemingly as curious as we were. Perfectly relaxed, unconcerned about our eight pairs of eyes asking to know more about her. Languidly she looked us over, only moving for privacy when a loud group arrived behind us, seeking to know who we were sharing space with. We stayed quiet, calm, waiting. Their beeps came with frustration, thinking we were looking at a downed log and not willing to wait for the hidden beauty. What a lesson for me to remember that when the time is ripe, simply wait and be patient. Then the reward of the unseen may become seen.
The low branching log hid her small yet powerful frame. Moments after they drove off in a cloud of dust, she came out, scent marked and slowly, assuredly walked behind our Land Cruiser. Pausing there to fully take us in, she rolled over in the sand, strong, playful, completely relaxed. As she stood to move on, it was plain that food for the evening was now on her mind. Leaving us, she leapt gracefully to a lookout tree, her piercing gaze scanning for unaware food on the hoof while we continued on to our refreshments at camp.
"The Free soul is rare, but you know it when you see it - basically because you feel good, very good, when you are near or with them." Charles Bukowski, German-born American writer