Sri Lanka was my sister’s and my very own haven. Lush jungles, wind swept beaches, creeping slithering creatures, soft sounds, wafting ocean breezes and elephants’ rear ends disappearing into the foliage…this was our ‘not in school’ wonderland and we shared secret adventures.
Right now, Sri Lanka is in political and humanitarian crisis but I have an elephant story to tell….with no particular message beyond the fact that Baby, as an elder, in spirit, told me to..
Before there were any elephant orphanages, the uncle of a friend of mine began the very first one.
He had saved a baby elephant that had been caught in a crossfire that had killed its mother. The baby had been hit by a bullet at the very same time and was blinded in one eye. In caring for the baby, Uncle and Baby fell in love with each other, and so Uncle adopted Baby and raised him as if he had been a human child. Years passed and they grew old together, they spoke the same language and loved each other beyond knowing.
One day Uncle’s assistant left and Uncle brought in a younger man who happened to enjoy over indulging in drink. While Baby was bathing, the young man sat down with a bottle and then another and another, and finally when it was time to go home, he was in no shape to walk and so Baby scooped him up with his trunk and carried him all the way. The next day Uncle decided that this plan was not going to work and that he needed to care for Baby himself, even though he was frail. As they walked home after the bath, Uncle holding on to Baby’s ear, a minibus drove by very very close to the two of them. This was a narrow rural road, and the driver, in fun, blasted his horn, which startled Baby. In his startle, Baby flailed his trunk and swatted at the minivan with a mighty thrust and at the same time, the trunk swiped Uncle and knocked him flat. Uncle died.
Baby, heart broken, decided that he needed to die as well and went into suicide mode. If an elephant lies down on its side, it means that it is ready to die as this will collapse its lungs. This is what Baby did, while howling in grief. To save Baby’s life, he had to be tranquilized and stood up. ..parallel bars, similar to gymnastic bars, were built to hold him up, and he was strapped to these, day and night, as he was determined to kill himself.
Uncle’s funeral came and went and Baby displayed passionate pandemonium while continuing a hunger strike. He was determined that his life on earth be over.
Two days later Uncle’s mother, who was very very very old, sat down with Baby for a chat. No one knows what it was that she said to him, but this chat ended Baby’s death wish. He lived on and was the respected elder of the orphanage that all of the elephants sought the company of and guidance from.