December | 2020 | Life on the Left Coast

On this, the last day of 2020 I think that many people are breathing a short sigh of relief that this year is over – good news and good riddance, at this symbolic break between past and future. It’s a short sigh of relief because we all know that tomorrow we awaken to the same world.

But how about ending this last day of the year with a good news story.

Earlier this month Kavaan, “The Loneliest Elephant in the World” was rescued from deplorable conditions in the Islamabad Zoo in Pakistan.

Media attention was high, not only because of the wonderful event itself but because Cher lent her celebrity status to the mix through her participation in helping this to happen. Cher and friends, through their charity Free the Wild, helped fund the very expensive rescue, which shipped Kavaan from Pakistan to his new home in an elephant sanctuary in Cambodia.

Cher with veterinarian Dr. Amir Khalil, head of mission for the rescue in Pakistan before transfer

Many other people and animal welfare organizations were also involved including funding from the Eric S. Margolis Foundation that provided the major funding for rescuing the animals from the Islamabad Zoo. It was a huge undertaking involving these groups along with pressure from the Pakistani people, and the eventual support of the Pakistan government and courts. Earlier this year the courts ordered the closure of the zoo and the dispersal of the remaining animals, which has now been completed.

In Pakistan four-paws.org veterinarians worked with Kavaan for months before the transfer, building up his health and “training” him 3 times a day to load in and out of the purpose built container that he would be travelling in. Lessons had been learned from the total fuck up that had occurred earlier at that zoo when an attempt was made to transfer out two lions – a total fail that caused their deaths.

In Cambodia at the elephant sanctuary, they constructed a special 3 acre interim holding pen where he now lives temporarily as he is quarantined and adjusts to his new life. Later he will live with other elephants in this jungle reserve. He has already met the three females who live there, through the fence.

/// Kaavan, an Asian elephant, extends its trunk from behind white posts to reach out to another elephant at the Kulen Prom Tep Wildlife Sanctuary Tuesday, Dec. 1, 2020, inOddar Meanchey, Cambodia. Kaavan, dubbed the world’s loneliest elephant after living alone for years in a Pakistani zoo, has captured worldwide attention, and will soon join other elephants in the sanctuary. (Four Paws via AP)

Someone at the Cambodian sanctuary posts short videos on You Tube every day of Kavaan in his new home. That’s how I start my day, checking in on this wonderful animal, now in happier times.

Many organizations are working hard to fight against the practices that cause such cruelty to animals and it is heart-warming to see that people care enough to overcome the obstacles to help and make change. It took years and a lot of work to achieve Kavaan’s release. And as for Cher and her organization, that was originally formed in response to Kavaan’s situation, they are turning their attention to other potential rescues. It seems that Kavaan is not the only “Loneliest Elephant in the World”. Targets for further rescue work are (descriptions from freethewild.org):

Mundi is the only African elephant at Mayagüez Zoo, Puerto Rico, where she’s lived in isolation for over 35 years. Taken from Zimbabwe, Africa, at the age of two, Mundi has lived a life of almost total solitude, endured two tropical storms and now remains captive in a Zoo that is reportedly closed.

Born in 1975, Lucy is an Asian elephant who has lived in the sub-arctic conditions of Canada for over 40 years at the Edmonton Valley Zoo. She has never been with another Asian elephant and her only companion was taken away in 2006. She is 1000 lbs overweight and suffers from significant arthritis and foot disease. She has difficulty bearing weight on her back legs and, due to an inappropriate diet, suffers dental issues and painful colic issues which have caused her to collapse – seen lying down, slapping her stomach with her trunk. With no place to swim, no mud in which to wallow or trees to scratch against, Free The Wild aims to work with Edmonton Valley Zoo to find an amicable solution in securing her release. Despite being 45 years old, Lucy has another 15-20 years left of her life.

Billy the Asian elephant has called Los Angeles Zoo home for nearly thirty years. In that time, he’s had little-to-no stimulation and developed stereotypical behaviours associated with isolation, frustration and stress. Campaigners and anti-captivity lobbyists have been advocating for his release for years.

And not only elephants are lonely. Bua Noi Thailand’s last gorilla resides in Pata Zoo, on the 7th floor of a department store in the middle of Bangkok. She’s lived behind glass walls for 31 years, having been taken from her home at the age of 1 in 1988. Her mate passed away over a decade ago; the zoo staff and neighbouring primates her only company since.She is an incredibly intelligent animal who needs psychological stimulation, space and at the very least, direct sunlight. She has never set foot outside.

The hard work of compassion continues.

Today is the Winter Solstice, the shortest, and my second favourite, day of the year. For months now I have been watching the days get shorter and along with it, the weather get grayer. Three days ago we had a full day of cloudless sunshine, the first since November 8th, if you can believe that. Otherwise it has been showers, rain, partially cloudy or partially sunny. I still scratch my head over the latter two descriptions – not entirely sure what the difference is.

Living here in this more temperate place, and not having months of snow to look forward to (or not) as I did living in Ontario, it is easier to see this day as a turning point, rather than as the first official day of winter, the beginning of a horror show. In a few weeks the lengthening of days will be noticeable.

Still, this attitude could be seen as a stretch. Look what surprise awaited me this morning. First snow. By mid-day it has turned to rain and started to melt.

What to say about this year? This annus horribilis. Truth is this has been the second year of Awful. This has been a time of my good friend’s cancer diagnosis and death, other friends developing and living with serious illnesses and undergoing other losses and hardships, illness and death in the families of some of our other neighbours and huge family turmoil. Add in the virus and other madness and insanity in the world around us, and the biggest question for me becomes “How do I live in the midst of all of this, how do I find my path forward?”

And it is in living the question that the answers appear and the path forward reveals itself as a conscious choice. For it has also been a time of transformation, connection, magic and finding the way to peace. Allowing the heart to break can serve to let the light in.

Earlier this month I was standing on a stool decorating the windows with green boughs and strings of lights, when suddenly I realized (or accepted) that this holiday season would not be happening. Public health orders are prohibiting gatherings in the home with anyone other than residents and no travel between regions. No gatherings of friends and neighbours this year, no Christmas with Steve and Rosie the Dog and the new addition to his family, Sox the kitten. “What am I doing this for?” I asked, out loud as it turned out. “Well Dennis and I are still here” replied Howard, quite rightly. I carried on, although with lowered energy levels; the task took more days to complete than usual, but I’m so glad I did it as the beauty of those colours and lights bring such joy.

Also it helped to let go of my own feelings of loss of the usual kind of holiday season I’ve taken for granted. I’m not the only one, that’s for sure. It also served to broaden my sense of connection and compassion with all those other people, millions of them, whose lives this year have been changed and who are all struggling, each in their own way, with an altered reality and their responses to it. Living through heartbreak, grief and pain also opens my heart to all other beings who are suffering as well – the human condition. May this serve awakening.

I am learning the true power of gratitude, as every day, no matter what is going on, I am thankful for what I have, for where I live and for the life I lead. Connecting with the natural world sustains me and I walk with deliberate intention to notice, to be mindful and aware of what is going on. I watch the birds interacting with each other and the sea lions swimming by the beach, the huge trees in the forest swaying, dancing in the wind, beautiful cloud formations passing by and it is all beautiful beyond words. Earlier this year, for the first time, I found the baby owls, the fledgling toddlers recently out of the nest and learning to fly and do what owls do. I hung out with them for quite awhile one evening watching them and laughed out loud as I saw one of them, trying to keep up with its sibling, fly from one branch to another, miss its landing and sink to the ground. Oops. Still a few bugs in the system. Picked itself up and tried again, as toddlers do. How lucky am I to have been in the right place and the right time, to witness that!

The smallest things bring a moment of joy. Earlier this week I saw the little iris reticulata bulbs starting to sprout along the front driveway – they will be up by the end of January barring any deep freezes that will slow them down, but won’t stop them. A matter of weeks away.

So what do you call this attitude on this, the first day of winter? I think I’ll call it “Hope springs eternal”.

Happy Solstice.

Nerd Notes: This Solstice is also a special day as Saturn and Jupiter will appear to be very close together in the night sky, so close they could appear to the naked eye as one very bright star. What makes this so rare? According to NASA “It’s been nearly 400 years since the planets passed this close to each other in the sky, and nearly 800 years since the alignment of Saturn and Jupiter occurred at night, as it will for 2020, allowing nearly everyone around the world to witness this “great conjunction.”