Life in Livingstone

Friday morning we woke up early (as usual) to travel down to Livingstone, Zambia. I was very pleased to see how developed some of the areas in Livingstone have become. One area has a very nice shopping market with a pizza place, burger place, and one other nice restaurant. I spent most of Thursday watching members of our group bungee jump, while others in the group went on an elephant safari. I set aside money to do one thing, so I booked an elephant safari for Sunday evening. I was very pleased that I decided NOT to bungee jump since it looked so dangerous and sketch. I later changed my mind and forked out the money to jump on Monday.
Saturday morning we traveled into Botswana for the big safari. During the cruiser safari we were able to see many animals including giraffe, impala, hippos, elephants, kudu, hogs, and so much more. Our group was fortunate enough to see a leopard that was hidden in the bushes. Our guide had very good eye sight and knew the leopard would be hiding nearby. That morning, the leopard was seen killing an impala and hanging it in a tree. Our guide knew the leopard would be nearby, so we eventually found it. We were scary close and the leopard could have easily attacked at any moment. After lunch, we loaded onto a pontoon boat for the second part of the safari. This was definitely my favorite half, simply because our guide was AWESOME. He would park the boat very close to the animals nearby, which allowed us to take a good look at them and take pictures. During the boat portion of the safari we saw many crocodiles, hippos, buffalo, and elephants. The whole experience was absolutely fascinating. Seeing the majesty of God’s creation through the different animals that he has placed here on Earth was very enjoyable. I feel that God speaks to us through every living thing, from small ants to big elephants. I noticed an interesting parallel between the way we view elephants/hippos with the way we view God. Throughout the entire safari I heard members of our group say how “cute” and “innocent” and “sensitive” these animals are as we admired from distance. Elephants and hippos seem very innocent and cute from a distance, but hippos kill more people in Africa than any other animal. An elephant stomped a young woman into three pieces in Livingstone less than a week ago. Too often we view God as some cuddly bear who will give us what we pray for and who will comfort us and make our lives happy here on Earth. I often view God from a distance, without the appropriate fear and respect. We admire these beasts on Earth, neglecting their ability to kill people with ease; the same way we view God, forgetting his incredible power that is unimaginable.