After talking yesterday about all these animals on our safari trip, I remembered sadly the pacing of a lonely cheetah then and on other occasions when I have seen this fast moving creature in captivity. I have an attractive scarf, alas, not silk, but I liked the design enough to buy this synthetic one.
I want to dedicate this blog to yet another granddaughter who, like the cheetah, is fast moving and does not like to be fenced in. In the past, she was a great traveller and had many close shaves with danger. In fact, other family members joked they would not travel with her, as she seemed to attract disasters. The first warning was in Cuba, when a hurricane struck. The residents of her hotel were moved to another in a safer area, but that too was hit and the hotel roof ended up in the swimming pool. Maybe, she got off lightly as some Japanese residents had not understood the Vacate Immediately and were found dead when she returned to the first hotel. Her second near miss occurred in Thailand where she met up with a girlfriend who had been climbing in the Himalayas. My granddaughter is not a climber, but it was she who had to dive into a ravine when her friend lost her footing and fell into the torrent leaving her unconscious. Her training as a swimming guard equipped her to save her friend. Both their backpacks with their money and passports were swept away by the water. Then worried parents in England had to come to the rescue. We were all anxious when she decided to spend a year in Australia, reasonably safe working on a tea tree plantation in the east for six months, then followed by work on a pearl farm on the western side of that vast continent. On the day before she was due to fly home to England, she was bitten on her bottom by a poisonous Redback spider in an outdoor toilet, developed a high fever and it was touch and go whether she could fly.
Two years ago, she told me she wanted to spend her birthday with me in Richmond. It was Orchid Festival at Kew Gardens and I felt that was a safe place, no hurricanes forecast, no deep water and only friendly bees. We had lunch in the Orangery and safely experienced The Hive.....I have included this photo as it shows how fantastic this structure is. Being a busy bee myself, I love sharing this experience with others. Now for the Princess of Wales Conservatory where the orchid festival was being sponsored by Thailand. I thought again about the ravine in that country. In this glasshouse at Kew there was only the artificial small lake and the odd iguana to face and I will have survived a trip alone with this dear granddaughter.
Nice to remember that day again by wearing the Cheetah scarf today in my courtyard garden. I will keep well away from the fish pool, and shout loudly if the fox appears, the heron or even a blue jay. One of them has scared off my wood pigeons and the nest is empty.
I don’t feel lonely, but it will be nice to have a family visit again.
Busy Bee, Scarf Face!
Blog 42.