Happiness is an Elephant Mud Bath
I photographed this baby elephant in Kenya, at the Olare Motorogi Conservancy, an area of protected land adjacent to the famous Maasai Mara. The baby was only three or four months old, and was playing with his mother in a mud hole. It was absolutely delightful watching the little baby as he rolled around in the mud. He was so covered in mud at one point that he didn't look like a baby elephant at all, he just looked like a giant mud ball with legs! I remember how cute he was when he was lying on his back, his little legs wiggling in the air. We laughed and laughed as we watched him play.
When he tried to get out of the mud hole, he couldn't do it, because the slope was so slippery, so his mom helped by pushing him up and out with her trunk. Once he was on dry land he ran away as quickly as his little legs could take him...and then he turned around, raced back to the mud hole, and slid down the slippery slope as though he was on a playground slide! This baby elephant provided me with happy memories that I'll never forget, and the photograph of him reminds me of his joy.