Although we occasionally considered building a small ark, the animals were cozy and dry. However, we humans resembled large canaries in our yellow rain slickers as we dug trenches and manned the sump pump to divert the water.

The unprecedented rainfall soon gave life to masses of delicate purple, white, and yellow flowers which blanketed our hills. And, the vivid blooms perched on top of the cactus resembled small Easter bonnets.

Our wildlife also benefited from the abundant moisture and we were delighted to see "herds" of baby bunnies, quail, and antelope ground squirrels everywhere we looked.

Our director, Pam Bennett-Wallberg, was in Africa for the month of April. Although we were thrilled she was able to research her second book project, we found it took three of us to fill her shoes! Phil, Hayden, and I all got a good lesson in what a "day in the life of Pam" is like - for 30 days in a row!

Over the course of that month we learned a lot about the level of care and commitment it takes to successfully run the Center. Once again, it revealed what can be accomplished through teamwork and cooperation - traits so well exhibited by meerkats.

Many of you, very thoughtfully, inquired about Pam's trip while she was in Africa. So, we thought it was appropriate to give you a little glimpse of her journey in this newsletter. We will return to our regular format in the summer edition.

So, for now, please join us in a little "arm chair" trip to the great continent of Africa.

Ever since May 2000, when I returned from studying meerkats with the Cambridge University research team in southern Africa's Kalahari Desert, I've had a caterpillar living in my head.

Fortunately, this "caterpillar" is not real, but merely a metaphor for my gnawing, insatiable desire to return to southern Africa - the land of crimson sand, the land where sunlight is luxuriously decanted over every living thing, The Land of the Big Thirst.

But, despite my desire to return to Africa and continue my research for a second book project, I was not without qualms. Several things bedeviled me: Would I find the perfect guide to teach me about the wonders of the Kalahari, would I be able to afford the trip since it was personally financed, and would I be able to convince family and friends that I wasn't criminally dumb to set out on such a journey?

I admit that the African "horror" stories tended to dampen my desire to return. It was at those moments that my "caterpillar" talked to me. And, just like Alice in Wonderland's caterpillar, my "caterpillar" also asked in haughty tones, "WHOOOO ARE YOU?" I responded as Alice did, "I hardly know since I've changed several times since morning."

And, so, I also changed and vacillated. One minute I was going to Africa and the next minute I wasn't.

However, just like Alice, I was eager to "grow" - not in stature, but in life's lessons. Thus, nervously, I followed my "caterpillar's" advice and returned to Africa.

Dantes Liebenberg, the owner of Kalahari Tours and Travel, proved to be the perfect guide. I was lucky to have found him. His skill, expertise, and passion for the Kalahari made the month I traveled solo with him a magical experience. He never failed to impress me with his uncanny sense of direction, his knowledge of the flora, fauna, and native people of the area, his ability to spot animals and birds where I saw none, and his exceptional culinary talent that made my pants fit a little tighter.

This journey, unlike my last visit to Africa, did not focus on habituated meerkats, but rather on gathering information for a book about the flora, fauna, and native people living in the meerkats' homeland. Thus, photographs of my favorite animals were literally of them "on the run" since these were truly wild mobs. Although it was a bit frustrating to not get close to the meerkats, it was gratifying to see these robust groups living out their lives as nature intended.

Happily, we did see many local references and signs that featured the Kalahari's most beloved mammal.

Our leisurely itinerary took us through the most remote areas of South Africa and Botswana. We were awed by the mosaic of woodlands, savannas, and the shimmering gold of the grasslands. We marveled at the reflection of trees thrown into the sky and the peach-tinted clouds. We laughed at the springbok that joyfully jumped and seemed to hang in the sky like Christmas ornaments. Beasts of every size and stripe delighted us.

However, there were "unplanned events," too. And those, in hindsight, may prove to be the most cherished and memorable of all: Our truck got badly mired in the mud, we had a tire puncture in the midst of a testy herd of elephants, and I, unwittingly, tried to shower with a large puff adder. A hyena opened the truck's tailgate and left enormous teeth marks in the metal freezer. That same hyena also tried to get into my tent for a package of gum and, for his efforts, received a thump on the nose from my trusty paperback book through the nylon tent. I survived a mokoro boat ride as we skirted a few cranky, submerged hippos. The baboons and vervet monkeys outsmarted us, robbed us, and then laughed at our misfortune. A herd of buffalo stampeded through our camp and a freak electrical storm "fried" some wires and locked us out of our truck. We endured pesky tick and mosquito bites and, then, trekked through the dangerous terrain of Tsodilo Hills, the sacred home of the Bushmen. And, we experienced the ineffable joy and fear of seeing our small, neat footprints overlaid by paw prints every morning.

  

During the deep, dark African nights, as my body vibrated with the roars and rumbles of the lions and elephants that shared our camp, I felt privileged to be part of a pristine sanctuary full of luxuriant life and unexplained mysteries.

A journey is successful if memories, brilliant as stained glass, frequently flash through one's mind and never fail to elicit a spontaneous smile. I smile a lot since I returned from Africa.

The best parts of my trip are too numerous to mention. The worst part of my trip can be succinctly and simply stated - it ended.

I am also indebted to our friends and donors who, most generously, sent me notes, letters, emails, and lucky travel tokens that traveled to Africa with me. They were constant reminders of those I hold dear. I am blessed to have you in my life.