‘Here in Africa’, ‘there’ for most,
a famine screened, more tribal wars,
corruption – hidden in the west –
but best, some game played on the veld,
safari horsepower – we were there.
A train of lenses, more than beasts –
is this the elephant’s retreat,
as angry farmers, tourists, war,
to drive away or closer by,
ignoring slums in city streets?
A continental wonder here,
identified, one atlas mass,
though out of mind, say, Europe’s spread,
where war and tumult too ignored,
so we can glory, empires’ ways.
I see an ostrich, buried head,
the vultures, jackals, hounding prey,
I hear hyenas, bankers’ bread,
the lions’ roar, Trafalgar Square,
and leopards as they change their spots.
Stephen Kingsnorth (Cambridge M.A., English & Religious Studies), retired to Wales, UK, from ministry in the Methodist Church due to Parkinson’s Disease, has had pieces curated and published by on-line poetry sites, printed journals and anthologies, including Poetry Potion. He has, like so many, been nominated for the Pushcart Prize and Best of the Net. His blog is at https://poetrykingsnorth.wordpress.com