Fireblossom Friday: An Elephantine Challenge

Toads are small, though they may have big ideas. Elephants, on the other hand, are enormous, and to me, pretty fascinating. Fireblossom here with another poetry idea for you.

Today let's try writing something on the theme of elephants. There are two kinds of elephants that I'm aware of: the Indian and the African. I tell them apart by the ears--the African's are much larger--but I'm told that they differ in size and temperament as well, the Indian being less aggressive.

Elephants live in family groups. Females stay together for life, with their mother, aunts, sisters, and so on. Males, or bulls, strike out on their own eventually, but do spend many years with the herd they are born into, first.

Elephants really do have an amazing memory, and the matriarch leads the group to find food, water, and safety. An elephant pregnancy lasts nearly two years! And if the calf is female, they will stay together in the herd until one of them dies. Elephants grieve for each other when one dies, and they seem to have mourning rituals. Although it is arguable what exactly is going on, elephants have been taught to paint (!).

Write something with an elephant at its heart. 

Write about elephants and family.

Write something fantastical about an elephant, that would only happen in imagination.

Write something about the majesty and intelligence of elephants, or their loyalty or courage.

Write about the deep emotional lives of elephants.

Write anything, as long as it is new for this prompt, and has an elephant or elephants as an important focus of the poem. Then link up, and have fun.