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Africa FINAL Secure
Africa FINAL Secure
No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying
and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from the publisher.
ISBN-13: 978-0-615-32889-8
Printed in China
Acknowledgments:
“Cleansing the Kill”—Earth’s Daughters, “Splinters & Fragments,” Issue #72, 2008.
Versions of the following appeared in a chapbook, “Out of Southern Africa,” 2005, published by Finishing Line Press:
Taking photographs and writing poems have both challenged us and allowed us to extend the pleasures
of our journeys, keeping them vivid in our memories. These pursuits have also allowed us to share our
travel experiences more fully with family and friends.
We are fortunate to have traveled widely together, but have always worked on our chosen artistic
pursuits independently. When we considered a friend’s suggestion that we publish a book that combines
our poetry and photography, we were surprised to find how often our two different “takes” fit together.
In retrospect, this is not so surprising. We were, after all, on the same trips. And forty-five years of
marriage probably helps, too.
Though each poem relates to the photograph it accompanies, it does not necessarily reflect exactly what
the photo captures. Rather, we offer our separate reactions to what we saw and experienced, in some
cases similar and, in others, quite different. In only a few instances were poems written specifically to
accompany photos in this collection.
In this volume we combine the poetry and images from three trips to Africa—South Africa, Botswana
and Zambia in 2003; Kenya and Uganda in 2004; and Kenya and Tanzania in 2008. All three helped
us to discover more about our world, and our selves. We are pleased to invite you to share these trips
with us, and hope that this book may inspire some of you to prolong and enhance the enjoyment of your
own travels through the exercise of your particular artistic talents.
1
Répondez, S’il Vous Plaît
2
In Camp
4
Adolescent
7
A Snapshot Stage
8
The Ubiquitous Impala
10
Safari
13
On Wealth
14
No Secret Where Elephants Walk
16
17
Statuesque
18
19
At Home in the Manyatta
Life is simple
if not exactly easy
As for happiness—
no guaranteed pursuit—
tamp it into one small gourd
and carry it around.
21
On Shielding Offspring:
The New “Tommy” Gazelle
23
Little egrets grow in stature
25
Robben Island
for emphasis—
except for that one raw Truth
which he regrets
cannot bear Reconciliation:
26
The Scary Veldt
The safari promises “The Big Five” could do a human in, not to mention
those most sought by hunters for their heads, the hippo and the crocodile, known
their skins, their tusks, their horns and for the sport to drown whoever dares to venture near.
of killing something large and dangerous. Indeed, I have no urge to swim with these.
We go to glimpse the wild, unrefined. But I must constantly remind myself
I go convinced we will emit safe vibes when the others come within an easy reach
so must keep telling myself that fear itself that I am not to hug that shaggy mane,
is not the only thing to fear while here— stroke those silken spots, or horns of bone
that the lions lazing tawny in the sun, or hair, this roughly wrinkled, pink-tipped trunk.
the mommy leopard licking clean her cub, I recall my younger daughter’s fond good-bye:
the cape buffalo who suffer ox peckers “Mom, if you get eaten by a lion,
to perch on them and pick off parasites, I’ll be really pissed.” I fail
the rhino and the elephant with skin to fear creatures so theatrical.
impervious to slights, who lead the lives But do not think me brave. I quake when buzzed
of vegetarians—all, they say, by the unseen mosquito out for blood.
29
Mahale Chimp
30
Hippo Haiku
32
The Pride
35
Recital
37
In the Townships
38
39
Assailable Warthog
His head a spade for beating foes, Spot-lit, displaced, up in that tree,
for digging up the roots he eats; ash gray, glint-red, half-
his neck so short eaten, he still bleeds
he must kneel to be able with the leopard who stashed him
to reach his cropped-reed dinner table, caught in mid-deed.
40
Gorilla Trekking
Our tiny plane jounces low, lands at the lip of These giant beings do not sleep in caves
The Bwindi Impenetrable Forest. or dig out dens. On the forest floor each builds
We mean to burrow in. a saucer nest of twigs, leaves and vines
as if some mammoth flightless bird,
Here troop four families more ungainly than the ostrich.
of mountain gorillas—largely at peace.
Fur instead of feathers
Years ago Dian Fossey’s story of these great apes protects against the cold, the rain—gentle
and how they grew to trust her as a mate’s love-grooming
plunged me hip-deep or thunderous as an alpha male’s breast-beating.
into a yearning to be her, to face
fantastic kin through the long-lost mist of time. We reach fresh nests, trek on
through the slick, the suction of rain forest mud.
The region’s governments—on and off unstable Vines lasso ankles, feet.
as volcanic peaks—impose strict rules: Thorns grab socks, pants, sleeves.
Buy permits in advance. We tear away, jolt ahead.
Each day six track each family to watch
one brief hour. At last we peer through dense greens to see
furry babies clamber and swing,
Official papers and receipts clump together juveniles bare teeth, practice wrestling,
six of us to climb on faith the lone male—his wide back sashed right across
that we will find and see the family “H” with silver but taking second place to none—
whose full local name stretches beyond hopeless. choose and pick and peel and taste
one sprig at a time.
The trek: four hours straight uphill—
one armed guard ahead, Through his leather mask of nonchalance
one behind. Both stay mute. They mean amber eyes fix on what his thick fingers plucked
to keep us safe from human guerillas. as he sweeps a baby back into safe bush.
Uganda thrives on tourist trade.
We watch speechless lest human talk disturb.
Trackers have gone ahead But somewhere on this climb my wish
start where they left the H’s yesterday, to be Ms. Fossey sloughed away.
find the beds they made last night, go from there. Risk malaria?
Day after day slogging
through rough Impenetrable Forest?
42
43
44
Could they be more unlike?
45
Return Flight to Entebbe
46
47
The Cape Buffalo
He lumbers forward,
head slumped below his shoulders,
humbled by his chosen work
of chewing over matters
to usher in a more just world.
48
Zero-Sum Game
51
Dry
52
Crossing the Mara
54
55
And what is worth your while?
Nets fray and rip with constant use
from thrashing fish
from snagging rocks, debris and hooks
from the sheer weight of success.
Then to repair—
Clove hitch floats and weights
pulled loose. Thread your net needle.
Sew tears and worn out spots.
57
Jezzep
58
The White Rhino
60
62
Termite Monarchies
63
To Be a Good Bush Guide
First you must own seamless people skills. Be adept at mimicking birdsong
Call every client by name. so you can prompt that call again
Have patience without seeming to need it— as you open a guidebook to the exact page
while you identify waterbuck which offers portraits of this bird.
for the fifth time during the same game drive.
Maintain a sense of humor— Offer up insects, plants. Who eats what.
chuckle at stale jokes, tell fresh ones Which are poisonous.
seeming not to notice whose are funnier. What leaves, roots the Maasai use for each disease.
Serve picnics as if the queen had come to tea.
Have detailed mental maps of the territory—
Exude confidence so everyone feels safe. however vast—know when in cross-country pursuit
of lion, how to get back to Go.
It goes without saying that you must be fluent Drive as though weaned on stock-car derbies
in your clients’ language—which is not your own— where tracks have no pit stops, no help at hand.
so you can share what you see and know.
With patient good humor, serve sundowners
Spot birds and animals, of course— and ooze confidence while you fix the jeep
often from great distances— that breaks down out in the wilds.
and give species, sex, age, habits, calls.
64
65
Mourning Ritual
After weeks
fuzz forms, in months
kinks appear, but it takes years
for hair to grow out long.
67
A Different View
68
Kilai
70
Elephants are so much easier to know.
But Mike can identify each zebra by its stripes—
Dash-Dot; Dot-Y; H; L-Underlined.
He reads the hieroglyphs at their rear hip joints
where three black slants of lines converge—from behind,
from round belly, and up the leg—to make a pattern
unique as any fingerprint.
But at the next camp, Grevy’s zebras graze,
their stripes all running parallel. No hint
73
Vantage
74
Field Work
Time and again the Maasai guide, or another unfamiliar being to bale up
bare-eyed, spots animals a long way off like that final straw inside my camel brain.
names each dot Nearby late sun glares off the dry gold grass,
and then goes on to say what it is about— cover for a small tan dik-dik—
eating, sleeping, sitting, yawning, stock still but for his nose—
twitching tail or ear— and a golden leopard slinking low.
while with binoculars I scan the distant hill My eyes burn and tear, tired
not doubting him but under strain from so much squinting
to pick out against the gray-brown cliff into bright sun and dust-whipped wind
the brown-gray shape he calls while the dik-dik scents
not just generic antelope but eland, an eye-high broken reed tip
Thompson or Grant’s gazelle, impala, with a teardrop
76
Man and chimp share 98% of their genes.
79
Wrapped in Meaning
80
81
Samburu Village
82
Absence, On the Magkudigkudi Salt Pans
84
Meerkats of the Kalahari Desert
87
The Lion Honeymoon
He pursues; turning
on him, baring teeth, she roars,
I have a headache!
88
The Hippos Demur
91
Flamingoes At Long Last
and the odd Marabou stork who strolls past lone cape buffalo—
mavericks knee-deep in lake mud, out of sorts,
waiting for some tide to turn.
93
November 2008
94
To Fight or Not To Fight
97
On Grasslands
99
Papyrus
100
Rapprochement
an open invitation.
He sneaks through,
103
Still Life with Giraffe
104
105
Kori Bustard
as if born to lure
any female of right mind
and all he need do
elaborate nests
their intendeds test and vet
and when found wanting
ladies disinclined.
He impugns their sanity—
Who can fathom dames?
106
107
Amphibious
She waddles up
onto the river bank,
her skin taut
as an overblown balloon—
plastic, shiny
a wet pink black,
108
Lake Victoria Village
A school of lively Luo children in bright We tour the meager Peace Corps station—
and scanty clothes splash into the water part clinic, part recreation center
to meet Eugene’s small boat. for orphans and the elderly.
They know him. He lives here, too, And when Eugene returns us to his boat
more often fisherman than guide. the children help him push off
He has brought them visitors before. and wave us on. Nearby
that run muddy from the overflow where porous cliffs—part nursery,
of barrels, bins and nets part playground—grant surer sanctuary
that hold fish waiting while they too fish this lake.
111
112
Beneficiaries of the Landscape Architects
stretch rear legs—in stockings long and yellow— while his mother looks away. Her black tear-streaks
lower down one side to strike a pose mute sun glare as she scans for food. She stops
they hold as if already sculpted there her head’s slow swivel course to stare, stroll down,
in the real-life style Remington once chose. trot off, then bolt from her cub. She returns to drop
But for the smudges that mark their hips with gray, the young gazelle she caught and dangles by its throat.
they come pre-mounted, in a burnished bronze display. They gorge. On a new mound she licks clean their coats.
113
Grooming
114
Turn About
117
It’s All in the Timing
118
119
Locals
120
122
Ostrich Attraction
123
Cleansing the Kill
Fringes of the vultures’ dark wings flutter
like prayer shawls raised in tribute for a passing soul.
Claws spread, they land and hop the last few yards
124
125
Ooooooooh!
126
The Art of Dress-Up
as Pegasus
into the northern sky.
The rest of his white herd bray
a ballad of bravery
then wisely aim less high.
But to mourn,
each brush-cuts its mane
paints its body, head and legs
with stripes
of funereal black
128
130
Family Planning
This tribe’s long limbs grow strong and lithe, stay lean
on their finite, if not meager, food supply
of milk and blood.
After all, women here have enough to do, enough to care for.
131
The Saddle-Billed Stork: A Parable
132
133
Kenya Fishing Village
135
Grace Personified
Now watch how from his high branch he sticks that dismount.
137
Please Come Again
139
In Appreciation
Early in 2009, our friend Marilyn Susman suggested that we put together a book that combines Arnie’s
photographs and Carol’s poems. She set us to mulling and, from that mulling, this book evolved.
One World, our friend Michael Lewis’ book of beautiful photographs that he took in fifty countries, served
as an inspiration to us. Beyond that, Mike generously shared his encouragement and experiences, which
kept us focused and saved us countless hours and headaches.
Our daughter Wendy Snell took a great deal of time to read the poems carefully and to offer insightful,
sensitive and helpful comments.
The comments and critiques of poet friends Maureen Flannery, Mel Furman, Deborah Rosen, and Arlyn
Miller, helped shape and improve this work.
Dave Jordano, our professional photographer friend, generously provided his guidance and expertise in
improving the photographs.
The advice, encouragement and good humor of our friends Steve and Sharon Fiffer provided moral support
(and good counsel) for us in this project.
Other friends took the time and interest to give this work what Adrienne termed “loving scrutiny”—Adrienne
and Syd Lieberman, Bonnie and Marty Oberman, Bob Bennett and Harriet Tropp, Beth and David Hart,
Michael and Valerie Lewis, and our favorite book-ish group (affectionately know as “The Group”) Naomi
and Dan Feldman, Noreen and Gil Cornfield, Alison Edwards and Henri Frischer. Their loving scrutiny
improved this book greatly.
Our designer, Pat Prather, and printer representative, Eric Taylor, were responsive and professional in guid-
ing production of this book.
140
Carol Kanter
Carol’s first published poem appeared in Iowa Woman (Spr/Sum, 1995). She
won first prize in Poets and Patrons’ 1995 International Narrative Poetry Contest
and subsequently has had poems published by Ariel, Blue Unicorn, ByLine,
Explorations, Hammers, The Chester Jones Foundation, Kaleidoscope Ink, The
Madison Review, The Mid-America Poetry Review, Pudding Magazine, The
People’s Press, Rambunctious Review, River Oak Review, Sendero, Sweet Annie
Press, Thema, Universities West Press, and a number of anthologies. Korone
named her the Illinois Winner of its 2001 writing project. Atlanta Review gave
her an International Merit Award in poetry in 1998, 2003, and 2005. Finishing Line Press published
her first chapbook, “Out of Southern Africa,” in 2005, and her second, “Chronicle of Dog,” in 2006.
Carol Kanter is a psychotherapist in private practice. She has a B.A. in biology, an M.A. in clinical
social work, and a Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology. Her book And Baby Makes Three (Apocryphile
Press, 2007) explores the emotional transition to parenthood.
Arnie Kanter
Arnie is a writer and photographer and, in former lives, a lawyer and
consultant.
Arnie holds a B.A. from Brandeis University, a J.D. from Northwestern University School of Law, and an
LL.M. from The London School of Economics.
Carol and Arnie live in Evanston, Illinois, and are the parents of two daughters and the grandparents
of three granddaughters and, by the time this goes to press, a grandson.
141
Photographs
P.3 Cheetah with Thomson’s Gazelle, Kenya P.71 Crowned Cranes, Kenya
P.5 Richard’s Camp, Kenya P.72 Grevy’s Zebra, with Oxpecker, Kenya
P.6 Leopard, Kenya P.75 Cheetah, with Tommy kill and cub, Kenya
P.9 Young woman dancer, Kenya P.77 Sable, Botswana
P.11 Giraffe with Impalas, Kenya P.78 Chimp resting, Mahale, Tanzania
P.12 (clockwise) Superb Starlings, Pied Kingfisher,Secretary P.81 Young Samburu man with cattle, Kenya
Bird, Lilac-breasted Roller, Kenya P.83 Samburu children, Kenya
P.13. Yellow-billed Stork, Malachite Kingfisher, Kenya P.85 Salt Pan, Kalahari Desert, Botswana
P.15 Warrior-dancers, Kenya P.86 Meerkats, Kalahari Desert, Botswana
P.17 Elephant trunk and tusks, Kenya P.89 Lion couple, Kenya
P.19 Giraffe, Kenya P.90 Hippo, Tanzania
P.20 Samburu woman in her manyatta, Kenya P.92 Flamingoes in flight, Lake Naivasha, Kenya
P.22 Thomson’s Gazelle with newborn, Kenya P.95 Guides for Obama, Kenya
P.24 Egrets on old boat, Lake Victoria, Kenya P.96 Elephants, Kenya
P.27 Prison cell, Robben Island, South Africa P.98 Giraffe drinking, Botswana
P.28 Lion drinking, Kenya P.101 Papyrus in marsh, Botswana
P.31 Chimp, Mahale, Tanzania P.102 Leopard cub with mother, South Africa
P.33 Hippos in mud, Tanzania P.105 Giraffe skull, Botswana
P.34 Lion cubs, South Africa P.107 Kori Bustard, Kenya
P.36 Hyena, Kenya P.109 Hippo yawning, Tanzania
P.39 Man asleep in Soweto, South Africa P.110 Children and boat, village on Lake Victoria, Kenya
P.41 Leopard eating Warthog, South Africa P.112 Cheetah and cub on termite mound, Kenya
P.43 Silverback Gorilla, Uganda P.113 Topi lekking on termite mound, Kenya
P.44 Elephant and Egret in swamp, Kenya P.115 Chimp picking nits, Tanzania
P.47 Okavango Delta, with plane shadow, Botswana P.116 Mount Kilimanjaro, Tanzania
P.49 Cape Buffalo with Oxpecker, Kenya P.119 Wildebeest, Kenya
P.50 Cheetah eating Thomson’s Gazelle, Kenya P.121 Locals on the road, Uganda
P.53 Elephant herd, Kenya P.122 Ostrich with his brood, Kenya
P.55 Zebras crossing Mara River, Kenya P.125 Vultures with Zebra, Kenya
P.56 Young man mending net, Kenya P.127 Blue-headed Agama, Kenya
P.59 Chimp, Mahale, Tanzania P.129 Zebras, South Africa
P.61 White Rhino feet, Kenya P.130 Young wife inside manyatta hut, Kenya
P.62 Termite mound, South Africa P.13 Saddle-billed Stork, Kenya
P.65 Guide searching for game, Kenya P.134 Market, village on Lake Victoria, Kenya
P.66 Barbershop in the townships, South Africa P.136 Leopard in tree at night, South Africa
P.69 Flamingoes, Lake Nakuru, Kenya P.138 Zebras at sunset, Kenya
142