A sharp August sun makes my banging hangover after a farewell party even worse. I try to ignore it because this moment i

Right now, they have lined up to hug me, express their gratitude, and say goodbye. Maybe forever. The last in line is a man in his sixties, a leader of the group. We spent many hours discussing politics, religion, spirituality, but also my dreams and plans for the future. I am 22 years old and in awe of this man’s aura.,I wipe out the tears, open my hand, and stare at the weird statuette. It is attached to a little chain with a bunch of jingle bells; it looks like a circus thing. The statue is a cross-legged human figure with a big belly and elephant head.,He is the god of wisdom, knowledge, and beginnings. Young and old seek his council whenever they embark on an uncertain journey, or when they launch a new enterprise. They ask him to remove the obstacles from their path, both literal and figurative. Since he is a cunning being, often, he removes them by placing them straight in front of us — with this approach he challenges us to overcome our limitations and become better.,There are many interpretations of his elephant head origin. The most recited one starts with Shiva departing for a long journey, leaving Parvati alone and yearning for a child to keep her company. So she sculpts a small boy from sandalwood, turmeric, and pieces of her flesh. One day, when having a long bath, she asks him to guard the gate and stop anyone who would try to enter. It is the day Shiva returns from his journey.,It is the end of the international folklore festival in my hometown and I am a guide of this group from Gujarat in India. During the past six days, we spent every waking hour together. That is a lot of time since sleep was the last activity on our list of priorities.,After identifying something in need of improvement, unfortunately we still have to actually put the effort into improving it. No matter the context, motivation is intensely personal and illogical. Alas, I still haven’t found a surefire way to bamboozle my brain into tapping into this and I may never find one. At least I now know that I’m not alone in the struggle bus.,Notably, these men are not family-oriented at the expense of their careers. They are (and were) successful as individuals because they understand (and understood) the importance of having strong family support.,“Thank you for everything, Jan. We will never forget your hospitality and this beautiful festival. Here, this is a token of our gratitude.” He says those words with tears in his eyes, hugs me for one last time and joins his group on the bus, which takes them to another festival on their European tour.,It is an incredible cultural melting pot. People of various ethnicities, religions, and cultural backgrounds dance, sing, discuss, and drink together. Sometimes two young souls fall for each other and go intimate. No matter the age, everybody is having the time of their lives.,The opening scene took place eight years ago. As a dancer of the group, which organizes the festival, I guided the foreign participants since I was 16. And as a guy with the best English from all the organizers, I always took care of the most exotic groups — the Polynesian Cook Islands, New Zealand, India, Mexico, Congo, France, or Croatia.,I’m lucky enough to have observed this trait in many great men in my life, such as my grandfather (back in Vietnam), my brother-in-law (London), and my current partner (London).,Angered at a daring boy who prevents him from seeing his wife, Shiva cuts Ganesha’s head off. Despairing Parvati rushes out of the bathtub and orders Shiva to use his almighty powers to save their only son. With time running out the Lord of Destruction promises to bring her head of the first creature he encounters. When he makes his way through the jungle, a majestic elephant walks out of the bush.,Many other groups from all around the world participated during the years. Each day of the week, dancers and musicians perform for the excited audience in various city districts. When the sun goes down, all the groups hang out at the dormitory.,As someone who has been away from my home country for many years and has an absent father, I was impressed by how close my partner is with his family of many members and how caring and loving they’re towards each other.,He is also a patron of letters and writing; his enormous ears make him a sensitive listener, a quality he shares with every good writer. In his elephant head, he can store all of our stories, think them through, and then provide advice to those who seek his help.