#blackformsandrubbish

Have you ever woken up in the morning and your gunia of rubbish has been savaged, with all the cut-up pieces of paper, watermelon peels, pawpaw seeds and sigiri ash strewn all over the backyard? I have twice been a victim, and I spent a good 45 minutes cleaning up in my old pink pyjamas bottoms. (The rubbish truck comes once a week, but sometimes we wait for two weeks.)
I have also been racking my brain over which wild cat species could be prowling around my backyard as I sleep at night. I mean, I have no memory of having wronged any cat in the neighbourhood so why be this ferocious with my unwanted stuff.
I have tried all manner of tactics- tying the head of the gunia with a rope, putting on a big stone, locking the rubbish in the store, burning it. Eh! What haven't I done? Even blocking the space at the bottom of the back gate because I suspect that's where the big cat aka Lion squeezes it humongous body.
But late last night as I watched TV in between writing, I heard a noise. No, it was not the Balokole singing. Nor was it a pack of noisy dogs fighting and mating. It stopped as suddenly as it started. Again. The TV was turned on low. I turned the volume off.
Scrabbling. I wasn't imagining things or having a nightmare. Something was being dragged. My gunia!! It must be that 80kg wild cat!
My hackles rose. Was I going to let this animal make a bloody mess of my backyard or would we square it out? Then it hit me that I didn't have any weapons (stones) to stone it.
I tiptoed to the kitchen (I am also wondering why I was being like a fugitive in my home). I didn't switch on the light but climbed on to the counter. From this vantage point I could peer out of the high window that looks out on the backyard.
My eyes landed on a big black form. Jet black. A canine. "You mean there are wolves in this neighbourhood??" The creature was in the process of doing justice to the gunia! Tossing it about, as it struggled with the rope, making angry growling sounds! The sight was scary!
All my thoughts of attack vanished and I became immobile. My throat could only manage a strangling sound. " Gggg!! Gggg!! Gggg!!"
I watched wide-eyed as the wild cat-turned-wolf punished the gunia.
It must have been for a few seconds, then my hands returned to life and I started drumming on the window. The monster didn't even turn it's head.
I reached for a mwiko to throw at the animal. But I was too scared to open the window. Besides, there was not enough space to stretch and aim. Anti the burglar proofing. I used the mwiko to hit the burglar proofing.
The being stopped what it was doing and turned its head. It was a dog! Then it ran to the wall and jumped. It climbed so agilely to the top, era the scratch marks from its ma-nails are still there (I've noticed that there are actually several scratches).
It walked a few paces on the top of the wall then turned and gave me a very dangerous eye. I put on my scariest face to scare it (si dogs have good night vision), waving my hands for it to go away.
The dog just sauntered off, swishing its ka scarcely-there bum this way and that way, into the night.
The kamanyiro!