Imagine for a moment that you're a working elephant. You spend your days laboring hard for the logging industry. It's a dangerous job, but it's certainly better than begging on the streets of Bangkok. But then one day, your luck takes a turn for the worse and you break your ankle. You're basically useless to your owner now, except for the purpose of breeding. You're tethered to a tree with a short rope and a huge bull elephant is brought in. If you struggle, men with machetes are on either side of you to ensure you submit. The huge bulls are more than your small frame can handle and end up breaking your hips and your back. The process goes on for many years until your owner realizes you won't be giving him any calves. He sells you off to a little woman with a big dream named Lek, which means small in Thai, and she brings you home to elephant heaven on Earth! You get to spend the rest of your days surrounded by other rescued elephants, eating your fill of fresh fruit and grass, bathing in a cool river, and never have to worry again. That's the story of Maedo, the elephant who stole my heart at the Elephant Nature Camp.

It may seem odd to some people that we would be willing to pay money for the chance to volunteer, but having the opportunity to help these amazing animals with our money and our time was truly priceless. During our seven day stay, we worked hard shoveling elephant poo, cutting corn stalks with machetes for elephant food, planting pineapples, and unloading huge trucks filled with pumpkins and bananas. But we also got to feed the elephants, bathe them in the river, and get up close and personal!

Maedo (pronounced May-dough) was my absolute favorite. Her sloped back and awkward gait make her easy to recognize. The first time I met her, I fell in love with her big beautiful golden eyes and her sweet calm demeanor. Of course, being the sucker that I am, I gave her all the bananas I had at my disposal, a trend which continued throughout the week, haha!

In addition to our new elephant friends, we also met a lot of amazing people. Like all good conservation programs, the park works with the neighboring village to provide education and income opportunities. One day, we got to visit the local school to play with the children and help them practice their English. The young children were adorable and had a blast running around their classroom taking pictures of each other with my camera! Our favorite people were our guides for the week, whose hilarious sense of humor made even the most difficult tasks feel like light work.

I learned so much this week and was shocked to hear about the sort of treatment these "treasured" animals receive, not just in Thailand, but throughout Asia. I'm happy I was able to do my small part to help and plan to find more ways to continue to do so when we return home. I've even got a little carved statue of Maedo to remind me of both the pain and the love I witnessed this week.