Peter and the Elephant

In 1986, Peter Davies 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 Peter
approached it very carefully.

He got down on one knee, inspected the
elephant's foot, and found a large piece of wood deeply
embedded in it. As carefully and as gently as he could,
Peter worked the wood out with his 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. Peter stood
frozen, thinking of nothing else but being trampled.
Eventually the elephant trumpeted loudly, turned, and walked
away. Peter never forgot that elephant or the events of
that day.

Twenty years later, Peter 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 Peter and his son
Cameron were standing. The large bull elephant stared at
Peter, lifted its front foot off the ground, 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, Peter
could not help wondering if this was the same elephant.
Peter 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 Peter legs and
slammed him against the railing, killing him instantly.


Probably wasn't the same elephant.

This is for all of my friends who send me those heart-warming stories.