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My dad loved a good story and he was a great storyteller. Every night before bed he would tell us a bedtime story about an elephant named Elmer. My dad also listened to us and encouraged us to become who we are. My dad never made me feel restricted because I was a girl and before anyone else recognized my writing, I always felt that my dad was proud of me. He died on January 12, 2024 after a long journey with dementia. I wrote a new Elmer story to honour him and read it at his funeral for all of us. You can honour him by sharing this story with someone else.

Once upon a time not too long ago but very far away in the deep dark jungles of Africa there lived an elephant and his name was Elmer.

One day Elmer was walking through the jungle on his way to school when up ahead he spotted his friend, the missionary. They had been friends for many years so Elmer hurried to catch up to the missionary on the path.

“Good morning,� Elmer said. “Where are you going?�

The missionary looked up at him in surprise. “Oh, it’s you, Elmer. I’m headed out to the clearing on the other side of the jungle.�

“Without me?� Elmer said.

“You can meet me there later,� the missionary said.

“But I like walking with you,� Elmer said. “We have such interesting conversations and we watch out for each other and we find beautiful birds and fragrant flowers along the way � I point them out with my trunk or you point them out with your finger. I don’t want to walk without you.�

“I know,� the missionary said. “Walking through the jungle together with you is my favourite thing to do. But this time we just can’t. I need to go ahead of you.�

Elmer stamped his foot so hard a monkey fell out of a tree.

The missionary laughed. “That won’t help,� he said. “You’re on your way to school and other people are depending on you. I need to get going sooner than I thought.�

Now Elmer felt sad. “But what will I do if I see a beautiful flower or a scary snake and you aren’t there with me?�

The missionary looked right at Elmer. Elmer saw that the missionary’s eyes were filled with love and that the missionary’s eyelashes were almost as long as elephant eyelashes.

“Smell the flowers,� the missionary said. “If someone else is with you, point out the flowers for them to smell too. And as for the scary snakes, I need to tell you a secret: I’ve never been able to protect you from danger. We only made each other feel braver together. You do need to keep an eye out for dangers but we never came across as many as you might think given that we were walking through a jungle.�

Elmer thought for a moment: every single day there were beautiful flowers and funny monkeys. There was sunlight coming through the leaves of the trees and raindrops dancing on spiderwebs. There were other friends to meet on the path and snacks to eat along the way. They always kept their eyes out for danger, but dangers didn’t come every day. Maybe the jungle wasn’t so scary after all.

“But am I big enough to walk on my own without you?� Elmer said. His voice wobbled a little.

The missionary laughed again. “Elmer. You’re an elephant. You’re the biggest thing in the jungle. But anytime you don’t feel big, you can always find someone who will walk with you.�

Elmer felt a little bit bigger and a little bit better.

“And on this walk, you can know that I will be waiting for you in the clearing ahead. When you catch up to me, we can tell each other about all the beautiful things we’ve seen.�

Elmer nodded slowly. He suddenly remembered the day he had first met the missionary, the day they first walked through the jungle together.

“What does missionary even mean?� Elmer had asked him then.

“It means sent,� the missionary explained.

“Like a letter?� Elmer said.

“Exactly. Like a letter full of good news.�

Now Elmer looked at the missionary. “I thought it was bad news when you told me you were going ahead without me but maybe it’s a letter full of good news being sent ahead for me to read later.�

“Exactly,� the missionary said.

Elmer looked again at the missionary, his best friend. “You look tired,� he said.

“I am tired,� the missionary said. “That’s why I need to get going soon. Sometimes people are as fragile and delicate as flowers. I like that it says in the Bible: ‘if God cares so wonderfully for flowers that are here today and gone tomorrow, won’t he more surely care for you?’�

“I will try to remember that,� Elmer said.

“I’m sure you will remember,� the missionary said with a smile. “Fragile people sometimes even lose their memories, but as you know, elephants never forget.�

Elmer smiled too. Then he realized he also had to get going. He waved to the missionary and they headed off down their different paths. Then Elmer remembered something he wanted to say to the missionary. He turned around but the missionary had already gone around a bend in the path. It would be okay, Elmer thought. He would tell him when they met again and they would all live happily ever after.