The tusks of

7 600 elephants will be burnt in Kenya on 30.04.16.  This poem is dedicated to

those elephants callously slaughtered.

Out of the twilight they march to a African beat

Free swinging trunks and large padded feet

Cobwebs float like gossamer lace

African sunrise….a fiery promise in this magical place

Full of mystery they amble….romancing the sun

A horizon full of elephants….some thirty miles long

A dusting of Africa freckling their majestic heads

A powerful belonging in each well worn tread

Kilimanjaro rises….peaking above the celestial clouds

Caressed by the heavens….it stands colossal and proud

The African bush shrouded in russet clothes

The mighty continent grumbling beneath their toes

Creamy tusks glow….a life spark lit from within

A resounding boom……a deathly din

Invisible winds blow…..a dry warm breath

Elephants swaying to the ‘Dance of Death’

 OVER AND OVER

The flame of life extinguished by the human hand

DECADE AFTER DECADE

Elephants lie bleeding into the warm African sand

30th April, 2016….black smoke billows high

Thousands of blood stained tusks…..an elephant pyre

Choking flames engulf….blocking out the sky

Decades of destruction…..

WHY WHY WHY

Magnificent tusks…never ours to keep

A final salute to these giants…..as the angels weep

A haunting lullaby carries on the early morning breeze

Twilight lingers….restless in the trees

Gilt edge clouds drift above the rising sun

A horizon full of ghosts marching……some thirty miles long

SAY NO TO IVORY

WHEN THE DEMAND STOPS…THE KILLING WILL STOP