This week’s poem inspired by the stunning Ankole cattle herds around Lake Mburo area, and the people who have breed these spectacular livestock. Whatever the motivation behind selecting for big horns generation after generation, the result is a sight to see.

Ankole Breeders

 

Why would you breed for such horns?

Herds resting in African shrub and bush,

Gentle giants in a landscape of thorns,

Hidden in green, marked by

Clean, curved lines,

A leafless forest of horns

 

I’ve heard they help to keep bodies cool.

Damp-muzzled, calm-featured, deep red hides matching

Raw soil of anthill mounds,

Clear watchful eyes beneath

Clean, curved lines,

A leafless forest of horns

 

Economists count in kilos, in liters of milk,

Something more than for kids and early morning tea,

Before grazing with zebras

Beneath thorny trees

Clean, curved lines,

A leafless forest of horns

 

Some other value, some unmeasurable gain,

Breed for status, beauty, unspoken art,

A sense of creation,

Bovine red against green,

Clean, curved lines,

A leafless forest of horns.

 

Rwakobo Rock, Uganda, 2018