Lions Devoted To The Hunters

Lions Devoted To The Hunters

They raised them from cubs with rough careful hands

Fed them fresh meat on the hot dusty land

Lions grew close to the voices they knew

Trusting the humans they harmlessly grew to

Golden eyes followed the hunters with pride

Walking beside them in powerful stride

Wild hearts softened through years of affection

Danger reshaped into strange warm connection

Then came the day when rich strangers arrived

Weapons all polished and cameras alive

Money exchanged with cold practical ease

Death purchased easy as shade from the trees

The lions walked over still trusting and calm

Recognising the scent and the charm

Never expecting betrayal so near

Love makes the innocent vulnerable to fear

Gunfire exploded through dry burning air

One lion collapsed with confusion in stare

Still trying to crawl toward the man that he knew

Faithful till death to the ones who were cruel

Lions devoted to hunters till end

Believing the hands there to guide and defend

Sometimes the deepest betrayal of trust

Comes from the people we love the most

Now photographs hang on expensive walls

Smiling beside where majestic life falls

While somewhere the silence of grasslands remains

Carrying sorrow through sun-scorched plains