The Loneliest Elephant

Good Wednesday Morning to you All,

As I returned home after dropping my children off at school, this morning, I heard a story on National Public Radio about an Elephant named Kaavan, who was once dubbed the world's loneliest Elephant.  You can hear about the story from BBC News here.  Kaavan had been living in an underfunded and ill-equipped zoo in Pakistan for 35 years.  He had become isolated and even more lonely in the last 8 years since his companion elephant died 8 years ago.  

Four years ago Kaavan acquired some champions - a veterinarian named Amir Khalil from Four Paws International, and international music superstar, Cher.  It has taken Four Paws over four years of work to finally get Kaavan relocated from Pakistan to a sanctuary in Cambodia where he will be able to live and roam with over 600 other elephants.  Read more about Kaavan, and the effort of Cher and Four Paws International here.  

What made me feel inspired by this story was the monumental nature of the task - moving a 5-ton elephant from Pakistan to Cambodia - and the dedication of Kaavan's champions to make it happen.  Just look - there is Pakistan in green and an orange heart in Cambodia. 


It's not like we're talking about a walk around the block here.  It was a seven-hour plane flight for Kaavan.  It's also not as simple as packing him into a doggie crate, closing the door, and loading him into the cargo hold of a passenger plane.  First, if an elephant doesn't want to get in a shipping crate, he's just not going to get in.  Those close to the elephant had to train him to trust them, train him to enter the crate and teach him how to stay calm.  They sang Frank Sinatra songs to help him stay relaxed.  Secondly, they had to have a crate big enough and safe enough to ship him in.  Then they had to have a plane capable of carrying that type of load and cranes available to move that load in and out of the plan and onto transport trucks to get him to his final destination.  All this for an animal!  At the risk of sounding heartless, I just don't think most people care enough to take on tasks like this, but I am so glad that there are some that do!    

This reminds me of the post I made earlier in the year about the cow and the pig who became friends after being rescued and joined together at an animal sanctuary in the southern US.  You can link to that post here.  When we see stories like this, it's a reminder that caring about people, animals, and causes that are bigger than we are,  hold great importance.  They remind us how to feel.  About how to give to something outside of ourselves, and about how to stand up for something that is right and good.

I hope that you will all feel as inspired as I was by this story.  I hope that it helps you keep your faith in humanity, and I hope that it reminds you to be someone (or something's) champion - today...tomorrow...always.  

Be Well Friends,

Mrs. Hempey   

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