Fear and Awe

On a 6 am walk in the Chitwan jungle in Nepal along with a Naturalist called Jog, a huge Himalayan black bear suddenly attacked. I was absolutely certain of a very painful and terrifying death!

Fear and Awe

 

Rustle, crackle, a snap and a thud

Probing eyes fraught with fear

Cautiously searching we tread through the mud

Curiosity peaked enveloped in terror

Creative tension wove a blanket of pressure

We found two bears engrossed with each other

It stilled our hearts and cut our breath

Silence assisting our presence unnoticed!

 

 

Chasing one another they ran down the trail

False safety assumed we looked on in wonder

Suddenly a third appeared from the dale

The loser turned round, saw us witness his defeat

Angered he bounded with the energy of shame

‘Times up’, I prayed to a Creator not ready

Make it quick, make it short and numb me for the kill!

 Yet, desire to survive overcoming despair

 

 

Reaching the top I looked for a way

Escaping the bear for I was his prey

Jog serenely smiled, standing perfectly still.

The only way out was back down the hill!

All my learning left me no scope

Humour of wasted energy, futile hope

Tension and fear poured out in loud laughter

Cutting us short was the roar of a tiger

 

 

The commotion sufficed to frighten the bear

I trade in my haven for an experience so rare!

 

Nirmala  

Author's Note

This incident happened many years ago, hence the poem dates back a decade or so, but this poem is only now finally seeing the light of day.

Reviews

[...]

... jesus!!! ... what an experience and what a narrative! ... my heart skipped a million beats as i read this ... "it stilled our hearts and cut our breaths" ... is absolutely a gem of a poetic expression and it captures the moment with great impact ... i can't imagine what it must have been like to be a witness to ... "angered he bounded with the energy of shame" ... this expression breathes fire ... and then the reader is left gaping with ... "yet, desire to survive overcoming despair" ... a profound truth rendered oh so poetically at just the right moment ... "jog serenely smiled, standing perfectly still" ... reminds me what i had read once about how to be in the presence of bears ... but still ... hats off to him for implementing it ... and again this verse brings to life the scene ... the characterization is brilliantly poetic ... "tension and fear poured out in loud laughter" ... another stunning expression ... and so amazingly precise ... "cutting us short was the roar of a tiger" ... gosh! ... goosebumps! ... what an image ... and how amazingly well-etched ... and the last two lines ... conclude this ravishing verse with incredible finesse ... with ... "the commotion sufficed to frighten the bear" ... "i trade in my haven for an experience so rare!" ... indeed ... if this ain't a rare experience ... i dunno what is ... glad this verse was brought out ... it's written so well that one almost feels like one was in the middle of all the action ... though i'll say ... there must be nothing that can parallel the moment ... would have loved to see this on film ... a 100 for outstanding work ...

[E. A. Fielder]

WHEW! That was an exciting poem! You told the adventure well! It had really good flow!