THE MAHOUT'S INVITATION

                    An early morning sound of high decibel on a Summer day was not only deafening, but also intimidating. I did not know what it was. Then there was a loud knock on the door of my village home at Raikia. I had come from Cuttack to spend my summer vacation at village as our college had been closed.  Upon opening the door I became almost face-to-face with a huge elephant that was standing right at our doorstep. The mahout, a swarthy middle-aged man with a yellowish bandana tied to his head, was standing beside the pachyderm with a big smile holding out a brass plate containing some hibiscus flowers and a small container with vermillion . I could understand everything and went back to my room. I offered a two rupee note to the elephant and one banana. The grateful animal handed over the money to its master  with its trunk and devoured the banana  cheerfully. 

                       Then there was an interesting turn of event. The mahout  offered me an elephant ride in return for the two rupees tip which was a big amount four decades ago. I was a little bit jumpy, but accepted the unexpected offer. As commanded the elephant hooked its trunk to facilitate my climbing on to its back. It was a day of great excitement for me. I sat on the elephant back for a short distance, then climbed down. I can not ever forget this memorable incident.

( Writer - Dr. Pradeep Kumar Nayak )