The heavy rains passed and the lush greens of the jungle beckoned the young cats.
In their short lives it had been an age since they were able to steal their way through the tall grasses and explore their surrounds.
The sweet wetness of the lowlands beckoned them and together they ventured into a section of the jungle that they had never seen before.
Tetsuo, the panther cub, and his best friend Everest, a gorgeous tigress, set out to explore and they left the safety of their dry sanctuary to see where today might take them.
From a safe distance, I had seen their differences but as they both went about their exploration, their differences fell aside, one by one until the only thing left was two young cubs in the jungle.
But they prowled at the same pace, sniffed the air with the same inquisitiveness, listened identically to the same rustling sounds of creatures that made a fast retreat from the young invaders.
Neither led, nor did either follow. They moved through the jungle together as equals and they worked in unison towards their common goal.
Did the grasses move differently because one was black and one was not? Did the prey fear one less she was a girl? I think not.
As they drove deeper into the tall grasses and wet green shrubs, they momentarily disappeared from sight and for a while I saw nothing.
There was a lonely mother’s cry in the distance and the sounds of a lone hawk on high in the canopy, but these two brave adventurers pushed on.
What they were seeking, I don’t really know. Could it be a search for Ponce De Leon’s fountain of youth, or simply just a casual adventure of two young friends?
I suspect the former is not of great significance to these young friends as yet, so perhaps it was just an adventure for adventure’s sake.
Suddenly a burst of activity as the grasses moved, a small reptile ran for his life and the two cubs leapt in a mash of black and stripes to where I couldn’t swear who got closest to the kill.
But the prey escaped and the cubs looked at each other, as if to say “I had him, brother!”.
But then they just smiled and jumped on each other and rolled and played until once more the shrieking sound of a worried mother invaded their ears and told them the adventure must end for today.
As they crept quietly past me, I thought how they both were amazing little cubs … destined to be rulers of their jungle and color or sex made no difference.
Wouldn’t it be wonderful to live in such a world .. where color or sex played no part in your destiny?
… just a thought.
