Tuesday 21 July 2015

All but your four fastest ships

This morning, for reasons that remain somewhat opaque to me, on our way to nursery LittleBear wanted to know about "all the animals that you and Daddy saw". This refers to our honeymoon in South Africa, particularly our trip to the Kruger National Park. So... I started trying to remember them for him...

Impala, Bushbuck, Springbok, Kudu, Nyala, Duiker, Crocodile, Buffalo, Wildebeest, Elephant...

And what else?

Hippo, Lion, Vervet Monkey, Waterbuck... 

And what else?

Baboon, Gecko, Rock Rabbit ...

And what else?

Zebra, Giraffe, Jackal, Squirrel...

And what else?

Vultures, eagles, lilac-breasted rollers, crested barbets, storks, herons, kites...

And what else?

Red hornbill, yellow hornbill, ground hornbill, double-collared sunbird...

And what else?

Getting desperate as my memory fails me on a species count from 6 years ago, I then made a tactical blunder and mentioned that we hadn't seen a leopard. I don't know what possessed me. There then ensued a long explanation of going out on a night drive and not seeing a leopard, which was a bit disappointing as every other night drive that week leopards were seen.

Why didn't you see a leopard?

Because it was hiding. (Come on, what was I supposed to say?)

Why did other people see the leopard?

Because it wasn't hiding when they looked. (I lined that one up nicely.)

So what did you see at night?

Erm... I can't remember... there was a very, very big crocodile, and a wildcat, and I think there might have been a genet, but I can't remember. I can't really remember what else we saw.

And what else?

I can't remember what else at night.

And what else in the day?

Errrr ... Oh! Yes, there were Klipspringer. They're one of my favourite, they stand on tippy-toes and jump from rock to rock. They're lovely.

And what else?

That's everything. I've told you all the things that we saw.

Except the things you saw at night that you can't remember.*
  
Yes, except those. I can't remember those.

Tell me the things you saw that you can't remember Mummy.

___________

* For some strange reason I was reminded of Buttercup and Humperdink and the four fastest ships.


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