I live on a river in northern Johannesburg and have done so for 20 years now. She has her moods – mainly she burbles along most of the year at knee depth, continuously exposing the granite and a tangle of roots underneath, but sometimes in summer rainfall season she roars close to the boundaries of its banks. From time to time the river is even a convenient drainage system courtesy of the City of Johannesburg water and sanitation department but the resident birds, frogs and other assorted furry animal communities seem to take it in their stride.


