Roberta Writes – Thursday Doors: A trip to Ivory Tree at the Pilanesberg National Park & The Ingwe and the Policemen Chickens, a poem #leopard #poetry #art

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We had a two-day mini break at Ivory Tree Lodge in the Pilanesberg National Park. These are a few doors for Thursday Doors. You can join in here: https://nofacilities.com/2024/03/28/fish-fry-doors/

Picture caption: Front entrance of Ivory Tree Lodge from the outside

Picture caption: Front entrance and door from the inside of Ivory Tree Lodge

The Ingwe* and the Policemen Chickens

An eruption of sound

Squawk! Squawk! Squawk!

Greets our ears

Accustomed to the quiet

rustling of the orange grass

Policemen chickens**

Scream their warning

A flash of a tail

through thick veld

The leaves of the tree shake

Dark, slinking shape

climbs swiftly

Guinea Fowls up the volume

Shriek! Shriek! Shriek!

Picture caption: Policemen chickens (guinea fowls) in the adjacent tree

Picture caption: Leopard climbing the tree

***

We see him moving

Driven by hunger

Lethal shadow

balancing on a branch

Tightrope walker of the bush

He makes his move

Misses

Disappointed, he turns

Swiftly retreating

His head pops into view

Propelled by a great leap

Then

He vanishes

Into the thicket

***

We wait; mesmerised

Will there be an Act 2?

The birds continue

To chatter and screech

He is heading for the watering hole

“Quick!

To the hide”

The guide shouts

Reeds tremble

He saunters into view

Gracefully drops down

Drinks

His fill of clear water

Replete, he turns tail

And, in moments, melts

Into dark scrub bushes

Picture caption: Leopard leaping down from the tree

***

“The Ingwe* is gone

He won’t return”

Slowly

Peace returns

Guinea fowl fly down

Heading off in a pack

At an admirable pace

For safer feeding grounds

*Ingwe is the Zulu word for leopard

**Guinea fowl fly up into trees when a leopard is on the prowl. They make a huge racket and have earned the nickname “Policemen chickens”.

Picture caption: The guinea fowls make a run for it!

Lastly, this is my latest artwork: Into the Light: Leopard

Picture caption: Into the Light: Leopard – original painting by Robbie Cheadle

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Published by robertawrites235681907

I am a writer of young adult fiction and poetry

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103 thoughts on “Roberta Writes – Thursday Doors: A trip to Ivory Tree at the Pilanesberg National Park & The Ingwe and the Policemen Chickens, a poem #leopard #poetry #art”

  9. Fabulous, Robbie! Great pictures of the magnificent leopard and those guinea fowls, topped off by the astonishing poetry and beautiful artwork! Those police chickens remind me of a visit to my grandpa’s neighbor and the guarding guineas he had in the front yard of his farm.

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  28. Your photos of leopards are wonderful, Robbie! The one leaping down from the tree is my favorite. Do both male and females have spots? We have jaguars and panthers in Mexico. Aztecs and Maya Indians revered big cats and passed down stories and legends. Jaguars have been spotted in our state about a hundred miles from here where there’s more vegetation. I’m glad they’re returning. University of Zacatecas studies them. I want to go on one of the trips with a professor who takes people on small tours.

    That lodge looks like a nice place to visit. Love your poetry about animals! 😍

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  33. Hi Robbie, You are such an amazing ‘all rounder’ I bet you have the most incredible dreams! Love your painting, photography, poetry etc., And sighting the leopard must have been special. You are making such rich memories…All credit to you. Warmest wishes. xx

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  34. Robbie, the entrance is beautiful and the poems are delightful. I wondered what “policemen chickens” were going to be. I should have known. In the part of the world where I grew up, in rural areas many people still used guinea fowl as alarm systems. Noisy birds. LOL. Hugs.

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  35. Not surprised you enjoyed painting, Robbie. It’s a great way to express yourself. I used to do water-colour painting, but never tried animals. Our eldest son of three, was/is a natural artist (though now a Copy-writer!) I have some beautiful studies of cats and a tiger and much else he painted years ago, but he doesn’t like too much publicity…

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    1. Lovely keepsakes, Joy. I have paintings and artworks of both my boys from their younger days. Michael’s were always lovely. I am really into the painting so poetry and painting are winning over writing novels – grin.

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