Zoo Karma

The first time I went to the zoo could well have been the last.

It was 1969, the summer of love, but for the inmates, a zoo was a lousy place to be.  Worse than a human prison, animals rotted behind metal bars, wallowing in a hopeless stench.

I didn’t care.  My grandparents were treating me like a princess, carting me around to see all the animals, letting me eat all the junk food I desired. 

I was a happy little brat until an angry hippopotamus sent a stream of urine in my direction.

After the peed-on-by-a hippo incident, I vowed to NEVER, ever set foot in a zoo again.

Yeah, well, that’s pretty much impossible if you have kids.  Somewhere in the parent’s manual it states that you must take your children to the zoo at least once per year.

So, yes, I’ve visited a few zoos with my children.  Maybe more than a few. 

Maybe I had to pay some dues after patronizing the lousy zoo, but today, I finally made a friend at the zoo.

This gentle giant came up to the glass, and he waved to ME, just me.

Now, you’re probably thinking he waves to all the frizzy-haired, overweight moms.  Could be.

But, I pulled back to put away my camera, and he just stayed there watching me.

When I came back, he waved to me again.

He didn’t wave to anyone else, just me.

In case you’re wondering, I’ve reconciled with the hippopotamus.  I couldn’t resist Sandra Boynton’s ode to their magnificence in the classic, But Not The Hippopotamus.

After reading that a couple hundred times, I had to take the kids to the hippopotamus exhibit, especially since the San Diego Zoo had gone all out to replicate their native environment with a swimming pond, and a glass window that lets you see them diving underwater.

Watching them glide through the water like oversized ballerinas letting out loads of poop, is one of those family memories that sparks endless discussion and remembrances.  It’s special.

And for a laugh, a good friend who knows of my hippo history, sent me a video link to Hiphopopotamus vs. Rhymenoceros, two species you won’t see at the zoo.

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