Tale behind the tail

KatieB has a collection of different ornamental elephants and I also have some in a box in my old office, I had never unpacked them and put them in a place of honour like in my older office (I move a lot!). The reason being that I had a severe dislike of the place...

Since moving to the new office my mood has improved and as soon as our furniture and last alteration is done my elephants will be revealed!

So today I will tell the tale of my Elephant theory...

I never had a real reason why I had begun collecting elephants except maybe that my Mom also had a few but now I know... I am an Elephant person.

Elephant persons are people that dream big and do things in big ways but with grace, caring and gentleness, not in a brash way but one cannot miss it either. Gentleness and caring because if you have ever seen a mother elephant with a calf you will know why I say so, Elephant people also surprise others... all of a sudden they are there, doing what they do with enthusiasm and determination. Just like that big Bull Elephant surprised me one night in the Caprivi... we were on guard duty when all of a sudden the stars disappeared... we heard a gentle rumble and realised that this elephant was snacking on the berries of the tree above our bunker... we remained very quite and after what felt like hours he moved off just as silently as he had come.

So there you are, we are Elephant people, KatieB and I. We both care and regard our fellow humans with gentleness as we go about our adventures together, just like the elephants trekking over the savanna.

But the most amazing thing about elephants is that they can communicate on so many levels we humans cannot hear or even comprehend...and so can Elephant people.

Oh and some of us Elephant people are not like elephants... I am useless at remembering things if I do not jot it down or blog about it!

Another thing is the elephants never move faster than the slowest of the herd and are always passing on what they know and learn to the other herd members. Something I never used to do but find myself increasingly doing so. Passing on what I have learned at work never used to be a pleasure, now I find it an exiting thing to do. The same goes for my hobbies and interests, I find that sharing these is so much more pleasurable than when I was younger.

I think as we grow older we lose that aggressive competitiveness and become mentor minded. It sure helps make life less stressful and seeing the light of discovery in another persons eyes is amazing.

The title actually comes from one of the most endearing things elephants do... they very often walk trunk to tail behind the leader... secure in the knowledge that someone has taken the lead and will guide them to were ever they need to go.

"I meant what I said, and I said what I meant. An elephant's faithful, one hundred percent." Dr. Seuss (1904 - 1991), Horton Hatches the Egg