I was born in Southern India and a constant theme in the past years has been the impact of changing climate. The last decade, in particular, has been horrible in the state of Kerala. The rains and floods have gotten increasingly more devastating – with death tolls getting worse each time.
The latest such event was a devastating set of floods and landslides in a region called “Wayanad.” 300 people are already reported dead with a few hundred more missing. The circumstances are heartbreaking.
Amidst all this, there have been some incredible stories shared about people who’ve come face to face with wild animals as humans have sought refuge in nearby forests in their attempts to escape the landslide. This story was one such example –
When we finally stopped, we found ourselves on top of a hill, face-to-face with an elephant. We were so scared, it was dark. We told the elephant, ‘We’ve come after a disaster. We’re afraid, Please, don’t show us anything more.’ When we looked closer, we saw tears flowing from its eyes as though it understood our plight. We laid down near its leg and stayed there until it was almost 6 a.m.” Sujatha said.
I felt so many emotions as I read this – sadness at their plight, awe at this elephant’s behavior, and frustration at the thought of elected officials who still walk around denying anthropogenic climate change and its impacts for personal benefit.
Nothing constructive to share beyond this story. Just a moment of awareness of these emotions… and acceptance.
