I tend my goats and my sheep
across these wide open grasslands.
The snakes move through the dry grass,
the eagles circle high above,
the chinkaras bound across the ridge,
the hares dart between the rocks.
I have walked this land a thousand times.
I know where the water runs sweet
and where the grass stands tall.
I have walked far, seeking good pasture —
across the plateau, over the hills,
through the heat of the Deccan summer.
And always, on the horizon,
or just beyond the fold of the land,
he is there.
We seek the same things —
food, water, safety, a place to rest.
We share the same grassland.
We have always shared it.
He keeps us on our feet, this apex predator.
The grassland is complete with his inception.