So: my play Miss Lilly was inspired by this really powerful article in the New York Times Magazine ‘An Elephant Crackup’ that I read years ago (thanks to Isaac for passing it along.) concerning elephant violence – a disenegration of peace between elephants ands humans – ultimately caused by poaching. Emotionally scarred, orphaned young elephants, left to their own devices, after witnessing the murders of their own parents.

NOW, years later, the play is finally getting staged – and one of the actors in the production is friends with a gal who’s been working for years on an incredible documentary, One Lucky Elephant – not only is this woman going to give me feedback (I’ve always been a-feared of inaccuracy, in terms of ‘elephant psychology’) but ALSO – sitting on the panel of a discussion about her film will be THE GUY WHO WROTE THE TIMES ARTICLE, who has heard of the play and wants to read it! I’m both excited and scared by this. A writer has the entire world at their disposal, or, the entirety of the internet. And you sort of pluck things and make them yours, not really thinking that the person who IS or CREATED that thing will someday be aware of you, at all. But ultimately, I think whatever the feedback back is from both the gal and the gentleman might be the missing link that brings this play from ‘oh wow, how funny and strange, Bekah, you are weird and funny and smart, but mainly weird?’ to: wow, what an intelligent play. (I can’t do this by myself. Maybe, when I’m a grown up, I will.)