When people started to let the elephant pick them up, a lot of thoughts ran through my mind.
"Is this safe?"
"Will I fall?"
"Will this cost extra money?"
Unfortunately, I didn't know the sure answer to any of these questions. All I could do was sit back and watch others as they slid off the elephant trunk laughing and full of obvious enjoyment and pleasure.
"Whelp," I decided, "I want to try it, too. People are having way too much fun to miss out."
So I walked over to the elephant, deciding that it was worth the risk. In broken Thai the man told me, "You have to lean back."
The only prerequisite was to trust, lean back, and relax.
It was a strange sensation as the elephants trunk lifted up between my legs and I was forced to recline on its nose. The world looked different and felt different perched on such a huge animal. (Seriously, my first reaction being up close to the elephant was, "Man I knew they were big, but they're big!!")
Thinking about this fun experience reminded me of what God is again reminding me of lately. We don't know the answers to the questions arising from our fears, but when we lean back into Him and His love we can just enjoy the ride.
As the elephant lowered its trunk to let me down I began to slide off like a little kid playing on a swing-set. My feet hit the ground and all I could say was, "Woah, that was SO COOL!"
