A Lion Chase

I've been back for a while from Africa now, and many of you have seen my pictures, but I guess I'm still not done blogging about that trip. It's something I've been thinking about every day. It's an experience that's going to be with me my whole life I think.

Let me just tell you about the most thrilling ten seconds of it.

We were hanging out the side of our open-sided truck watching two lionesses and a cub near a rock formation called a kopje. The cub had most of our attention, but we noticed one of the adult lions stalking slowly through the grass towards our vehicle.

We held our breath. There was only air and a few feet between us.She was going to come so close.

AND THEN SHE SPRANG RIGHT AT US!

It was the most amazing, thrilling second of fright I've ever experienced.

What we hadn't realized was that a kind of deer, a bush-buck, had been crouched in the grass, snugged right up beside the wheels of our truck. Nobody saw her until the lioness was in full chase, right in front of me.

I've never seen so much speed and power. The sight of that leap and race was heart-stopping. There is a frozen image in my mind of those muscles bunching in her golden shoulders. I've never felt so wide-eyed. It happened too fast for my camera to capture; it was forgotten in my hands.

The deer also was wide-eyed and breathless that day. It got away, by the way.