As she came close to the dry river bed, Malebo, the herd’s leader, wondered, Will we make it? The lions were there, in the river bed. Near the further end of the bank, a lion laid on a big rock with smooth edges and a lioness sat to the left, in the shade of a queen-size boulder.

Many days earlier, the herd had started its journey. The elephants realised they needed to get moving. The hard dry season had come. Malebo had decided a week before that the elephants should wait a bit before starting their journey. This was because one of the elephants, Ancel, had an injured foot. A lioness had clawed at Ancel’s foot as he had kicked out against her. He was trying to stop the lioness from pouncing on one of the little ones. The lioness dashed off when she saw other elephants running up. Since then, Ancel’s foot was much better; the scratches had luckily healed well. But now the area looked like the Badlands. There was not a trickle of water in the river bed. The last few leaves hung limp from sad looking branches.

Malebo ordered everyone to get ready for the trek. That meant a good night’s sleep. It also meant thinking about the long walk the next day. Everyone must think about the part they can play. They had to think about how they would survive the long walk.

The next morning, in the early-morning light, the elephants roused themselves and got ready to move.

“If we want to go far, we must go together,” Malebo said to a group of calves and other youngsters who had woken up early and were playing tag on a small patch of open grass. “That is our motto. All elephants believe in it.”

One of the little ones said, “Yes, Ma Lebo”.

Malebo waved her ears and touched the youngster with her trunk. She smiled to herself when she thought about how some of the older kids called her Ma Malebo and smaller ones called her Ma Lebo.

Malebo walked between the members of the herd and reminded everyone. “Drink enough water from the springs or any stream you can find. There isn’t much water. But try your best to get something to drink. Also make sure the calves drink some water. We’ll pass that field where there are some wild cucumbers. Eat enough of those for the long journey.”

In the east, on the horizon, a golden sun with many sparkles was coming up. The morning freshness and the sun’s glow on the horizon made Malebo forget the drought. She had a good feeling in her chest. She let out a burst of trumpet sound.

“What a fine day for travelling,” she said to herself.

But Quester was one of the last to wake up. He was Malebo’s younger brother; well, a brother in an African sense, really. He was actually Malebo’s cousin. The youngsters and calves called him Uncle Quester. But he had always been a troublesome one. From his youngest days he had loved butting heads with other youngsters in the herd. As Quester heaved himself up, holding onto a tree trunk with his trunk, he groaned: “Why do we need to leave today.”

Malebo replied: “Come now. Look at the morning. It’s a beautiful day to start the trek.”

They set off with Quester still moaning. “I haven’t even had enough time to eat cucumbers.”

Quester and two youngsters were at the back. Malebo looked back. I hope they are making sure no calves are left behind, she thought.

***

Tell us: What do you think of Quester’s behaviour?