Shunned by his Own Kind

by tempeste

A mature male lion reigns over a vast domain,
bold is his stride, many have eyes on his pride.*

King he remains until a stronger,
younger warrior claims his crown.

On rare occasions the loser survives;
but what awaits him
is a more tragic fate than death itself.

Stripped of his throne
and forced into exile.

Shunned by his own kind in solitude he wanders
and as he grows older and frail
he is unable to fend for himself no longer.

The once mighty lion
now lays alone , just skin and bone;
one last breath 'n then the hand of death.

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Lonely Poem writing prompt entry

Writing Prompt
Write a free verse poem to express the state of loneliness in not more than 15 lines.

A naturalist photographer came upon one such lion know in the Kruger park as Skybed Scar ( photo)

Challenged and defeated he survived but lived what short time he had in exile and solitude.

"Dropping my camera we stared at one another locking eyes for what seemed for an eternity. I just wanted him to know that he would not die alone as he struggled to breath, his chest rising only every so often..... only feet away , I watched for an hour as death neared ... one last twitch of an ear, his last breath and he was gone. The King was dead.'

Photographer Larry Parnell took the images of the lion s final hour.

* pride ..is a group of lions forming a social unit...the dominate male who mates with the females..
there are several females ..some wives, others daughters

cubs and some younger males...when they reach maturaty (3 years old ) the males are sent away ...they will go and challenge a lion in the hope to take his pride.

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Shunned by his Own Kind

by tempeste

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