I don’t know when I fell in love with elephants. I know they began to resonate with me when I became a mom. They represented family, leadership, protecting and intelligence. I believed this was me. I worked hard to do my best to lead and protect my family with intelligence. There were awkward stumbles. Each day I pray I gave the boys what they needed to be happy and successful.
A few years ago, it became really important for me to be where the elephants lived. I wanted to spend time in their environment. One day I told my partner I wanted to go play with the elephants. The look I received was one that seemed to question my sanity. But he agreed. I did not expect that one to go my way. I was ecstatic it went my way! After some research I decided I wanted to see them in Thailand. For one year we planned and planned. February 2020 comes. I am so excited. I can barely wait another day. Bags packed and ready to go…until the phone rings. It is the airline. All flights in and out of China have been cancelled because of COVID. No freaking way!! I was not about to miss this opportunity. I spent the day on the phone with the airline. There had to be another option. I admit I was not always the most understanding customer. After escalating my call to a director, I was able to secure new travel arrangements that did not include China. The airline was able to re-route us through Switzerland. Yay! Not only did they re-route us, but the new stop in Switzerland also extended the trip by almost a week. Double yay!!
Arriving in our little coastal village, Ao Yon was amazing. The colors, the beach were so vibrant and amazing. Our little home was 50 yards from the beach. Those 50 yards included the steepest hill. Going down was great but the walk up had my calves begging for relief. The beach was beautiful, not very populated and included $5 massages facing the bay. Massages became a daily event once we learned not to ask for Thai massage. There was nothing relaxing about the Thai massage. It was awesome for stretching my muscles but that was about it.
Our trip to the elephants was day 2. I was so excited I could barely sleep. My partner, however, caught a bug. All he wanted was sleep. Being the good guy he is, he still joined me on this adventure. First stop in the “elephant village” was the huts where they hung out and ate. I was enamored with their eyes. So big, brown, and round. I couldn’t stop staring into them. I felt my heart soar. My naivete showed when I was worried the elephant was crying. I was so worried they were sad. The patient mahout explained their eyes water often and did not mean they were sad.
The mahouts gave us buckets of fruit for our elephants. Their voracious appetites reinforced my feelings of interconnectedness. They devoured bucket after bucket. Wrapping their snouts around whatever was in your hand. These massive animals were gentle and kind, accepting the food.
Although I loved feeding and watching them, the highlight for me was the mud bath. The elephants happily walked to the mud pit for a swim. What a reality check I experienced being in the water with them. My appreciation of their size grew when I had to be conscious of my feet and body in relation to their feet and bodies. They like to sprawl out in the mud and be happy. The risk of getting stepped on was definitely a possibility. On my best days I am awkward. This day I was in a rocky, mud lake with huge animals. Normally, I rely on my partner to keep me from falling or stumbling. Because he did not feel well, he was not in the mud pit with me. A couple of times when I felt off balance, I would use the side of the elephant to steady myself. One time the elephant took a step, I freaked and moved to get out of his way. I stumbled and reached out to balance myself and got my hand full of a six pack. He was kind and helped me re-balance. I on the other hand was torn between mortification and excitement. Buff guys aside, hanging out, washing, talking to the elephants filled my heart with joy. The only downside was no baby elephants. They were moved to a different location. I missed out on cuddling and feeding a baby elephant…That just means I need to go back at least one more time.
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