Poems and Thoughts    by Frank Maurer

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Dinosaur Footprint Hunting. While teaching in Lesotho, Africa, I had my first child, Pierre, Who at two, 'followed' me around the countryside, Collecting bees at night And finding dinosaur footprints in daylight. This, all between my biology classes at the University. One spectacular trip was to a large valley, Where there were myriads of tumbled sandstone blocks, Strewn randomly throughout the area. I slowly walked amongst these boulders, When suddenly I found my first prints. A large, three-toed series of impressions, Spread across the flat surface. I carried with me plaster of paris, a water container, Strips of cardboard and a clutch of paperclips. I made a cardboard border around the print, Tied together at the ends, with the necessary clips. Water and plaster were mixed to a soft-solid consistency; Then poured into the void, the print primed with vaseline. Several prints were cast and then the waiting time. Each was pulled up and removed, now in a solid state. These prints were made in the seventies And many remain today (2026) on my farm to our delight. The five decades of preservation here on the farm, Equals nothing to the 60 million years of waiting in the sandstone, To be admired by humans today-- They, nowhere to be found during this creature's long past reign. Frank Maurer 6 January 2026 0145 Hours.