Thursday, October 8, 2009

Baby Elephant

I wavered a little bit on sharing this video of an elephant giving birth. It certainly makes for intense viewing at the moment of birth and if you tend towards the queasy you might opt to move along.

But I was moved by the behavior of the mother in the minutes following the delivery. There is compassion in her behavior and you can sense her anxiety as she works to get the baby to take its first breath. At the critical moment, when the baby has yet to breathe or even move, the mother bellows. I don't speak elephant but as a father I felt like I understood her. This primal, instinctive behavior is amazing to watch.

But again, not for the weak-of-stomach!

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