Photo Essay: Need Stress Relief? Sheldrick Baby Elephant Orphanage in Nairobi Competes with Other Addictive Habits, but This One Is Good for You!

On our last day in Nairobi, or Africa for that matter, we went to the Daphne Sheldrick Elephant Orphanage on the edge of the Nairobi National Park to see the feeding of the baby elephants (and one baby rhino). Daphne was the first person to develop a specific milk replacement formula that was suitable for the young elephants, apparently a task only veterinarians would appreciate fully. These babies are rescued and cared for after their mothers are slaughtered for their tusks. A calf less than two years old can only survive one day after being orphaned and without milk. That was so surprising to me that a two year old hundreds of pounds mammal would still be so fragile. Other than the unhappy context, this was a pleasant, happy way to end our time in Africa. If you are ever fortunate enough to be sent to Nairobi for business, but unfortunate enough to only have a limited time, check this place out. The catch is it is only open from 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM for the feeding of the elephants.

There was a large wheel barrow full of elephant sized baby bottles, and the elephants were fed by hand one by one by the keepers. The keepers had hoses and shovels, and before they brought the elephants out to the feeding area, they created the most luscious mud for these connoisseurs of that particular lost art form. The baby elephants were just so purely and exquisitely happy as they played in the mud that all the spectators were smiling widely and laughing out loud. You can feel all your problems take a backseat to the simple art of play. I think it took every one of us to the place where we carry our own simplest pleasure, including past joys of slopping in the mud just for the joy of it.

My daughter sponsored the newest baby elephant, Chuylu, who had just been rescued the day before. Sheldrick's has an outstanding sponsorship program with an excellent monthly newsletter and updates on your very own elephant. If you sponsor one ($50/year in 2006), you can come back in the late afternoon and actually feed your animal, but we could not do that because we had to be at the airport to go home. Actually, just as I type that and I am thinking how much time we wasted waiting at the airport, we COULD have gone back for the private feeding. H-r-r-u-mph.

They had one baby rhino who had to be led out separately. I guess even at that tender age, he was not good company. They told a horrendous story in their newsletter about a baby rhino they had rescued and who was returned to the wild, only to return to this place that had nurtured him as a baby and gore one of the trainers to death. So... don't try this at home.

They had nice gifts at reasonable prices. I bought a child's tee shirt for only $6.00 that had a picture of a baby elephant with the words 'Ivory Orphans.' My daughter bought a nice quality fleece jacket with their logo for $45.00.

One of the great motivators for travel is to escape all the problems we deal with at home. Maybe it is our would be career or our unholy matrimony or our teenage kids or a profound loss or ... whatever. Somehow when we are in an entirely different location and context, we feel less defined by the problems because we have a better perspective on them, and they do not loom quite so largely in our minds. Often by having a break, we can approach them with a new perspective and energy when we return home. I have major sleep problems at home and was really worried about sleeping on this trip, staying at 14 locations, including the 3 overnight plane trips, in 21 days- definitely not recommended. I actually slept better in these distant locations. I know you are thinking it was because of fatigue, but I have had plenty of totally exhausted nights at home when i could not sleep. Sometimes we just need a total change of scenery. Relief does not require one of the Seven Wonders of the World, or trekking three days into the South American wilderness, or a stay at a posh resort, or spending thousands of dollars on Parisienne haute couture. Relief can be as simple as to watch orphaned elephants, who also have come from crisis, delight in the pure joy of mud to flesh.

If I ever get back to Nairobi, I am definitely sponsoring a a baby so that I can go back in the afternoon. I can't believe we came so close but yet so far to that fun experience and ideal photo opportunity. If you ever get to Nairobi, it will be a happy memory for you, your kids, or even your grouchiest family member.