“Rise and shine girls, the sun is out and shining” announced my dad.
Yawning and stretching, I awkwardly rolled out of bed.  My bed head looked as if a tornado came through it and I could barely keep my eyes open.  Maddie, my sister, on the other hand acted as if she had 20 cups of coffee, almost jumping off the walls in excitement.  Maddie had beautiful layers of brown hair and hazel-green eyes that matched almost every outfit.  She was the daredevil in the family, the one who was not afraid to speak her mind, the one who always knew what to say, and the who had the craziest ideas.  I was the total opposite, I had blonde choppy hair that always dangled in front of my face and blue-grey eyes.  I would rather read in a nice quiet corner then go to a party and mostly referred to as the “shy” one of the family.  But, the biggest difference was I had the big bulky braces that made me look like a beaver.  With my lip barely covering the braces.
As we walked down the Table Bay hotel hallways I could hear African animals roaring in the morning sunlight.  The refreshing air hit me like a bullet, surrounding me in it’s pure sweetness, making me smile, and causing my arm hairs to tingle.
We finished breakfast on a full stomach, ready for what the day brought us and that is where are African safari trip started.

People chatting, kids laughing, my family and a bunch of tourist piled in the jeep.  Everyone had that I-can’t-believe-I’m-in Africa look, with their legs shaking up and down and smiles to the moon and back.  I could barely sit still, I just wanted to get to the animals.  I was so excited I had butterflies, so excited time went in slowmo, and so excited I couldn’t stop yakking. 
Gaps traveled through the car as we arrived at our destination.
“Whoa!” I said blown away.
It was the most beautiful sight I had ever seen, I thought to myself.  Animals were scattered everywhere at the watering hole, relaxing under a tree, or snacking on some grass.  I couldn’t help myself, I just had to get a closer look.  I hopped off the jeep, but in mid air my foot caught the railing which caused me to tumble to the ground.
“I’m ok” I declared brushing the dirt of my shorts.
“What a clumsy girl” stated a couple on the jeep.
I glanced over my shoulder and what I saw almost made my heart stop.  Everyone noticed the terror in my eyes.  I was so pale I looked like a statue, I swear if there weren't people behind me I would think this is a dream.  My bones frozen, my tongue tied, and my heart pounding.  In that moment I thought I was a gonner, in that moment my life was at stake, and in that moment my body was covered in sweat from being so nervous. 
“Oh...My....Gosh....Its a lion” I barely got the words out of my mouth.
A lion stared me dead on.  It looked as if I was it’s next meal and ready to pounce on me with his vicious claws. The roaring beast, clawing and sneering, licked its lips with his slobbery tongue.  The sight of his teeth made me cringe with fear.  My body shook, I couldn’t control it, It was like my teeth chattering, but it was my whole body. The jeep driver, Jeff, got out of the jeep and started helping me out of this situation.
“Slowly and quietly start walking back towards the jeep, but don’t turn around walk backwards” explained Jeff.
I did as I was told. I picked up my foot and carefully stepped back towards the jeep.  It worked, I screamed in my head.  I did exactly what he said tell I was back at the jeep, safe and sound. 
As we drove back to the hotel everyone chatted about how brave I was and how they could never do that.  I was so glad to be back in my family’s arms and being able to relax again.  The next morning I woke up to my dad’s voice,
“Rise and shine girls, the sun is out and shining” announced my dad.
That’s when I woke up with a smile on my face.