Elephant Enlightenment

So I moved into a mountain sanctuary near Chiang Mai about a week ago to help rescued elephants. It has been the most challenging and enlightening experience imaginable! Arriving, you'd think you'd reached paradise. Elephants wander around a secluded open-air restaurant surrounded by pink vines, lush majestic mountains and a rushing river. Trees with trunks the size of vehicles stand nearby. Even puppies can be found sleeping on the table tops (yes, paradise for me anyway). But before I can set down my bag or process the beauty before me, I'm unloading a 4 ton truck of watermelons, and then bananas! It's a good thing they bring in the sweetest Thai massueses from a local village for the evening hours. They charge $5 for a 60 minute massage AND a dutch crown braid for the ladies, included upon request! So after a few watermelon hours, I'm reclined with hot oil on my shoulders thinking, "oh yes, this IS paradise."

The next morning, I'm out in a bamboo field with a machete and a couple of Thai guys, panting, sweating and even bleeding as I cut down grass for the elephants, gather and wrap it, haul it on my shoulder across the field to a truck, and yes, load it. 280 bales. So much for the massage! I can't help it, I'm thinking, what the fuck have I gotten myself into? And I'm PAYING for this? But then I'm humbly reminded that these men do this every single day. And so I feel grateful, and inspired again by the mountain breeze, the smile on a Thai workers face, the sound of the elephants eating the bamboo right outside my my totally cool treehouse accommodation. Obviously, I fell asleep that night thanking god for the John Deere tractors and plows which can easily be found on farms in the U.S. And I smile as I remember what my fairy godmother said to me...
This is "the real thing." This is life. Enjoy every minute!

So I do. I soak up all the coolness involved in the epic experience of working directly with an old Thai man on a welding project. He speaks no English, and since I don't speak Thai, the ability to communicate verbally is completely unavailable. So we take another route; body language. And what a cultural learning experience this poses! It took no time at all to flow right into the groove of things, and we were moving quite efficiently, passing each other tools as needed and lending a hand for carrying heavy equipment under enormous umbrella leaves which cast decorative shadows on the gravel land. We spent the afternoon constructing rebar columns to discourage the elephants from crossing the river and wandering into private farming land at night. The experience was a solid reminder of what I'm here for; culture, to interact with the natives and to be showered with the natural beauty of this environment. After the job was done, it was time for swimming and bathing elephants in the river. Nice!

But of course, the next morning it's shoveling poo, followed by more shoveling of poo, and then wheeling of poo barrels to the poo pile. Evil thoughts begin to enter my mind. I say to myself as I'm musceling around elephant shit, "you know what, after all that unloading of watermelons, I deserve to take a few for myself. I'm going back after dark." and even worse, "damn, these elephants are so spoiled! I can't believe we wash the fruit for them. My horses never got that kind of treatment." for a moment I almost feel resentful when my intention was to offer my skills and help them. And then as if the Universe can hear my thoughts, I'm surprised when I look up and directly into the eyes of an elephant named Medo. She reaches her trunk towards me and hobbles over with a broken hip. She was injured in a lodging accident in the 60's, then lost part of her foot when she stepped into a land mine. As if that isn't enough, she was purposely blinded in one eye by her owner for "not listening." I touch her aged skin and I melt. She's so old and wise. I think to myself as I look to her, "I know nothing compared to you." Medo is in her 80's and has been through the kind of hell I can't even begin to imagine. The least she deserves at this point is PERFECTLY washed fruit, hand fed to her throughout the day whenever she likes. And that's exactly what she'll get from me.

In the evening, workers gather by the river and surround a campfire while mahots play their guitars and we all sing. Passing a bottle of authentic Thai rice whiskey around a circle of world travelers isn't a bad way to end a hard day's work. I'm even receiving German lessons from a new friend, and one phrase in particular has been literally and sarcastically applied to various situations throughout the week;
"geile scheisse!" or "great shit!"

Well, so far I haven't gone back to steal any watermelons after dark, and I haven't lost my leg to a machete. Instead, I'm bonding with elephants and building some muscle while I'm at it!
Yep, this is paradise.