It was in that still moment i realized, nature is the true mother in every form.
The night was very still, very silent till we heard the monkeys hoot in hysteria and the night came to life.
We walked towards the darkness from the comfort of our tents to get a closer look at the story playing outside.
With nothing but a chargeable spotlight, which i may add was very powerful. We tiptoed are way around the bamboo plantation.
It was then when I saw my first black bear cubs in the wild , sitting under a small thorn-bush , on an ant hunt I presume and putting ‘teddy’ to shame , the little guy went on grunting and digging , but the mother was still not in sight , believe me when i say that’s not a very good sign . The cry of the monkeys went louder and seemed closer. My insides felt a frozen shiver, “dogs!” oh thank god just dogs. Before i could take a sigh of relief the image of what i just saw came flashing back. I had definitely seen the dogs but they were running, running for their lives. We sat still not letting a breath escape and then we all went cold with fear and in that very moment between fear I felt such an extreme jolt of excitement it confused me.
Their eyes shone when they caught the light, lifting their camouflage they came walking right into the open. “This is our land”
With perfect spots and a perfect rhythm the panthers walked towards the waterhole.
This magnificent beauty and the now dead silence made me feel truly blessed, there is no place else i would have wished to be at.
My solo thoughts were broken by the sound of cracking twigs followed by something that sounded like thunder. “The mummy had arrived”. In all this fast and slow action the bear cub went out of sight. We were all in the middle of what was turning out to be a war between the panthers and an angry mama bear. They hissed and sneered then roared with thunder strength. It all looked to me like a well-directed play with perfect sound effects and spotlight focus. My father poked me with his finger and pointed towards a burrow. “So that’s where the cub is thought aloud and got a clot on my head. The very first rule of the jungle, ‘observe with absolute silence’. With my words causing no harm we went back to watching this act of nature.
It all fell silent again the panthers took their time to get a fill of their drink. The mama bear seemed to be at ease. She went and sat at the mouth of the burrow which conformed that the cub was in there somewhere, she watched the cats play then finally retreat. After the big cats have gone and other small animals came to the waterhole the cub came out followed by very small puppies. I was beyond amazed at how nature worked. The dogs that have come running from nowhere were near the burrow too. Mama bear was digging at the same spot we had spotted the bear cub at first “ant hill”, this time i said it in my head and grinned. The puppies went back into what I’m sure is their home followed by their mummy and the bear cub stayed very close to his mother.
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We sat there for a while watching then walked back to our tents
Encountered By – RUDHRANI SINGH JODHPUR
elementwild 