An Amazing Elephant Story (I had to share)
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Sometimes I like these heartwarming stories, but this one truly is amazing.
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In 1986, Dan Harrison (see picture above) was on holiday in Kenya after graduating from Northwestern University. On a hike through the bush, he came across a young bull elephant standing with one leg raised in the air. The elephant seemed distressed, so Dan approached it very carefully. He got down on one knee and inspected the elephant's foot and found a large piece of wood deeply embedded in it. As carefully and as gently as he could, Dan worked the wood out with his hunting knife, after which the elephant gingerly put down its foot. The elephant turned to face the man, and with a rather curious look on its face, stared at him for several tense moments. Dan stood frozen, thinking of nothing else but being trampled. Eventually the elephant trumpeted loudly, turned, and walked away. Dan never forgot that elephant or the events of that day.
Twenty years later, Dan was walking through the Chicago Zoo with his teenaged son. As they approached the elephant enclosure, one of the creatures turned and walked over to near where Dan and his son Dan Jr. were standing. The large bull elephant stared at Dan, lifted its front foot off the ground, and then put it down. The elephant did that several times then trumpeted loudly, all the while staring at the man.
Remembering the encounter in 1986, Dan couldn't help wondering if this was the same elephant. Dan summoned up his courage, climbed over the railing and made his way into the enclosure. He walked right up to the elephant and stared back in wonder. The elephant trumpeted again, wrapped its trunk around one of Dans legs and slammed him against the railing, killing him instantly.
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Probably wasn't the same elephant.|link=none|align=left|width=|height=0]
Poor dan could have thought how could it be possible to ship a bull elephant from Kenya to Chicago !!!
There is a reason for fences being built in Zoos. Is to keep those animals from hurting humans......
The Red Pope of Qatar Living
Abba, Abba, Padre!
That's Borneo, Kelly dear. Remember that old song?
~~I left my head, in kalimantan~~~
(apologies to Sinatra)
Thought flights from Doha to Muscat are direct and not via Kenya.
btw, how did you manage to escape the cannibals?
hehehehe, what can i say?
i read quite a lot have read all of sydney sheldon, wilbur smith to name a few
If you can't change your fate, change your attitude.
lol tcom thats great...ive read almost all his books but that would have been about three years back.since i came to doha thats onre thing i havent been able to carry on doing...sad isnt it...so i am in the dark as to what his latest book would be..
do you read anything else?
do it right - the first time!
Really friendly and also, since the Sultan did his Renaissance bit in 1970, they are involved in the business aspects of their own country. It was great to find them manning Hotel Reception (wearing their dishdashas and either the 'turban' or 'armama'? - like a fez) and so good to find we had a local man driving us when we organised a couple of little 'tours' for ourselves.
Charming, friendly and involved in the basics.
Also, of course, quite a stunning vista and totally uncluttered. It was like being in the type and style of an Arabia that I'd imagined but never come across.
Wowwwwwwwwww
Finally i find the link between us.. any idea which is the latest book by WS
If you can't change your fate, change your attitude.
lol my knowledge of wildlife comes only from reading too much wilbur smith , i am afraid ...lol.but that seems rather an unusual behavior for an elephant.
poor dan smith.hope u liked oman jauntie. my dad worked there for a few years and i used to visit him often. lovely place and more lovely people.
do it right - the first time!
You could be right!
I guess the punchline just appealed to my sick sense of humour :D
The same elephant came here in doha zoo.and become world thinest elephant.scarlet always go there too see it.lol
"Drink Beer Save Water"
probably he didnt remove the piece of wood fully.. left a piece still inside ....and instead of filing a malpractice claim...the elephant took the easy way out....ROFL...do it right - the first time!
that's exactly why the ending made me laugh out loud - I was reading it as a true story with a happy and magnificent ending. I wasn't expecting it to be a shaggy dog story :D
heyyyy...wasn't an ending i was expecting...sob..
Guys, the actual ending...
The elephant trumpeted again, wrapped its trunk around Dan and placed him carefully on his back. And the elephant trumpeted once more. Dan sat there atop like a king, until the sun went down. Man! what a memorable day that was!
DP
"Drink Beer Save Water"
but then again..does that make me a child??you betcha!!!
"zoo are only for kids" moral of the story.lol
"Drink Beer Save Water"
when I was on safari in Africa...the guide told about this one elephant that had been mistreated by a guide several years back...well this guide was driving through one of the compounds, came upon this elephant, who proceeded to knock the ever living out of the jeep the guy was in..seems it was the same elephant who had a VERY long memory for being harrassed as a young bull....can't prove it but sure does make for a wonderful story about not hurting animals...
dang it we missed you lady!!! Ohh a couple of bannings and several tantrums...or, same ole' same 'ole...
NEVER weigh right after vacation...just assume your shorts shrank...
How's you? Got back yesterday evening and taking it easy today (aka not looking at the laundry and definitely not going to weigh myself!)
Moral? hmmm Wasn't really thinking of one; it was just the punchline made me laugh out aloud :D
Maybe the moral is: Don't be suckered into sentimentality when it comes to wild animals and myths about them.
Although I DO believe the elephant has a long memory :o)
Have I missed any bannings or tantrums?
morning jauntie
when did you return back ?
what is the moral of the story?
"Drink Beer Save Water"