An Eggs-citing Story

With apologies to Dr. Seuss…

It was my favourite story when I was growing up.

Let’s face it, my imagination just filled in any troubling (ie. frankly impossible) potholes in the plot.

Still does, in point of fact.

Ahem…

Horton was an elephant who lived in the jungle. Friendly and kind-hearted, he was nearly always the first to offer help when needed—even when said offer may be a little…complicated.

On this particular day, Horton happened to be walking past the nest of Mrs. Mayzie, a bird who lived in the neighbourhood.

Mayzie had laid an egg and the euphoria of anticipating her ‘blessed event’ had, how can we say this judiciously?...erm…worn off.

She was ready for someone else to take over so she could take a well-earned (in her eyes) break.

An unfortunate word when talking about an egg, but let’s just go on from there, shall we?

Now, I will admit that it took a little convincing, but soon, Mrs. Mayzie (that lazy bird) was winging her way to Palm Springs ‘for just a day or two’ and Horton—he of the several lovable tons—was sitting in her tree, gently keeping her egg warm and comfortable.

Let’s think about that for a moment, shall we? Firstly: An elephant. In a tree.

And secondly: Said elephant sitting so gently on a bird’s egg that it wasn’t crushed into an eggy nothingness.

Now, I probably don’t have to tell you that five-year-old Diane swallowed this story whole.

Diane of later years filled in a lot of potholes (see above).

Back to my story…

Now Horton, because he was loving and dependable, or, in his words, "An elephant's faithful, one hundred percent!" stayed on that Lazy Mayzie’s egg for nearly a year.

He suffered through storms, ridicule and finally hunting season and not once did he falter in his task.

I keep wondering what he ate. (Can one order take-out in a jungle?)

The hunters who had discovered him during the aforementioned hunting season, rather than do anything hunter-ish, decided they might make a bit of money off him if they dug up the tree—elephant, egg and all—and hauled the whole kit and kaboodle to a circus.

Which they did.

There followed an arduous trip through the jungle, over mountains and across heaving seas.

I don’t know about you, but when I’m anticipating a ‘blessed event’, the last thing I want to be doing is crossing heaving seas.

Gulp.

Poor Horton could do nothing else but endure. And finally, he, his egg, and his tree reached their new home.

In the middle of a circus.

Where—you’ve probably guessed it—they were instant draws.

People came. They stared. They discussed.

They marvelled.

Now this will probably come as no surprise but coincidentally, Lazy Mayzie’s ‘day or two’ Palm Springs spa was just down the road!

Who would have guessed?

And our sweet little mother-to-be just happened to be in the mood for some big-top entertainment.

Imagine the surprise when she and Horton clapped eyes on each other.

Of course, Mayzie probably would have simply faded happily back into the audience, except that, at that very moment, the egg—that very egg Horton had been sitting on for 51 loooong weeks—started to hatch.

And Mayzie, now that the work was all done, decided she was ready to be a mom.

Words were exchanged–well, mostly screamed—and by Mayzie.

And Horton, he of the perpetually loving nature, backed down the tree and out of his egg’s life.

And that’s when things really went sideways.

Well, for Mayzie, that is.

Because the bird that hatched from that egg…

Well, that bird looked remarkably like Horton!

Yep.

Little trunk and ears and tail.

Of course, it also had wings and bird feet, but one can’t have everything.

And everyone—including the ‘chick’—proclaimed Horton the parent.

And Mayzie had to be content with…nothing.

I found this so satisfying as a child. I mean, she hadn’t done any of the work. Why should she get any of the reward?

And you know what?

I still think that.

Fly on the wall is our chance, once a month, to share what has been happening in our homes, lives and imaginations!

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