Lockdown 134

Lockdown Day 134 - 7 August 2020

Tonight would have been our second night in the Kalahari Tented Camp. This is a wilderness camp which means the animals can roam freely through the camp. The tents are semi-rigid and built on stilts on the edge of a dune, and has an attached kitchenette. The carport has a gate to keep animals from the vehicle and we were warned the hyenas sometimes pitch for dinner. 

The first time we visited this camp, both kids were still in high school. We had great games nights and I specifically remember one night I was reading very late, thinking the 3 men in my life were asleep. The youngest awoke and said, “Do you hear that?” I listened and sure enough it sounded like a lion grunting from very far off. I said, “Yes, it sounds like a lion!” 

Next thing he jumps up, walks over to his brother soundly asleep and says, “It’s him! His breathing sounds like a lion!” Later, that same night we were woken up (or shall I say jolted awake) by a jackal screaming under our floor boards! 

The first time the Kalahari freeze hit us was at the Kalahari Tented Camp. It was so cold, the milk in the fridge felt warm. The lowest measured temperature measured by the park ranger was -8. The second time was 2 years ago when we stayed at Urikaruus, another wilderness camp. It has much the same design as Bitterpan, except each room has its own kitchenette. All the rooms were on high stilts in a river bed overlooking a water hole. 

We had the honeymoon suite/bungalow. It was a wonderful stay. We saw a rich bird life and variety of antelope and giraffe. We even had a beautiful little Barn owl nesting in our “garage” roof trusses. The second morning, after braving the cold at 02h00 for the meteor shower and coincidentally seeing lions coming to drink, we woke up to our breath condensating and immediately freezing against the windows from the inside. 

The camp ranger confirmed all the water pipes were frozen and the temperature was -11! Luckily we had separate drinking water for some hot tea, so we decided to follow the sun and go for a drive clutching our warm travel mugs. 

No matter the freezing weather, the Kalahari dunes did not disappoint on that coldest of cold days. We got to see 5 Cheetah brothers lazing on top of a dune in the first sun. And as the sun moved over the Kalahari during the day, the animals moved accordingly. That night we enjoyed a warming fire on our little verandah, watching the sun disappear behind the dunes replaced by the star studded night sky. 

These scenes are new every morning and every night, just like the grace and mercy of God. It just keeps on coming like the revolving of the earth around the sun. Bringing with it the awe of His breathtaking creation and confirming His very existence. As it is written in Lamentations 3:22-23 “It is because of the Lord's mercy and loving-kindness that we are not consumed, because His tender compassions fail not. They are new every morning; great and abundant is Your stability and faithfulness.” Ggt. Everyday.