African Dreams

Night swathes me

In a cocoon of tranquility

And yet slumber is

Elusive and aloof.

African masks adorn the

Walls of this room,

Complimenting the photos

Of Elephant and Giraffe,

Pictures my mother captured

On Safari.

Zebra print blankets,

And mosquito netting

Hung from the ceiling

Haunt me with desire

For the land of Lion, Cheetah and Jaguar.

I want to set my foot upon

The soil of mankind’s ancestors,

Listen to the roar of thunder

Across the Kalahari plains,

While Hyena laugh

With their litters

Under a setting African sun.