Have you ever been punched by an Elephant?
I have......and it sucked! But, I still love and respect these incredible creatures, yet I give them more space these days...especially when they are eating.
THE DAY I GOT PUNCHED BY AN ELEPHANT !
About 10 years ago, when I was relatively new to Asia, I took some visiting friends to a highly-rated cultural show. Siam Niramit was getting rave reviews for telling the history of Thailand in an entertaining 2 hour stage show.
SIAM NIRAMIT
And so it was we had arrived early and as I looked across the carpark I saw a large enclosure with an equally large elephant chewing happily on some sugar cane.
We had some time to spare before the show began so I thought that I would walk over and observe this amazing creature. As I approached it seemed oblivious to my presence. I stopped a few metres in front of it and admired the grace and elegance as it calmly chomped down on its grassy treat. There was nobody around to mind it, it was just the 2 of us. As it reached down with its trunk to get its next mouthful of food, I put my hand out to gently stroke its trunk when...
BAM !!!
It hit me dead centre of my rib cage and I swear lifted me a few feet off the ground and left me sitting on my arse several metres away. There was nothing aggressive or even angry about what happened, the elephant merely shooed me away as you might shoo a fly when it lands on your arm while you are trying to eat.
As i dusted myself off and looked at my best shirt which was now covered in elephant spit, I stared up with a newfound respect for these magnificent creatures. He continued to eat, all but oblivious that I was even there. Mmm, thats some good sugarcane. I felt the bruise for a few weeks, and could only respect the immense power that the little trunk flick held. I'd hate to make him angry.
Love and respect nature...
Images:
http://www.zutrition.com
http://www.coversgeek.com
http://i.telegraph.co.uk
https://bb91ibsq1zwfhuw9-zippykid.netdna-ssl.com
Click here to:
Sounds like a awesome experience, haha :)
For sure, I'll never forget it :)
"left me on my arse." Life can do that from time to time, not just elephants. Great post, I enjoyed reading it.
true. Sometimes we need it to remind us how small we are :)
Very cool image! I am just happy you survived the experience.
This post has been ranked within the top 50 most undervalued posts in the second half of Jan 14. We estimate that this post is undervalued by $6.57 as compared to a scenario in which every voter had an equal say.
See the full rankings and details in The Daily Tribune: Jan 14 - Part II. You can also read about some of our methodology, data analysis and technical details in our initial post.
If you are the author and would prefer not to receive these comments, simply reply "Stop" to this comment.