Following Up With Friends Tarra and Bella

CBS News ran this inspiring follow-up on the story of Tarra and Bella, an elephant and a stray dog that warmed hearts everywhere, including my own.

Sure enough, Disney came calling pitching a movie idea with a live action trained elephant and dog. The sanctuary founders said no.

"Animals, elephants especially, aren't on this planet just to serve us. They honestly believe that some animals are here for the same reasons we are, to love and care for others," Steve Hartman notes of the sanctuary founders beliefs. I believe that's true of all animals, in fact.

"They don't need to use them to have value. They have value just being who they are," says Elephant Sanctuary co-founder Scott Blais.

Watch the full video here.

Tarra and Bella...Friends for Life

There's no shortage of depressing stories in the media lately, so this CBS News story is a nice change of pace. What is so amazing to me about this piece is not the love between these two different species, but people's amazement that such a love and a bond could occur. Animals have the same love of life and compassion as we do.

Watch CBS Videos Online

Tarra and Bella enjoying the simple pleasures of life, including a stroll through the woods on a sunny day. We can learn so much from animals. They remind me of the joy of being alive, which we humans often take for granted.


Learn more about the Elephant Sanctuary in Hohenwald, Tennessee.