Paul's Bear

 

Bear at Stamp Falls.
I used to walk Pup and Jasmine here.

I could write an entire ode
to a bear's furry ears -
so cute, like the black and white teddy
I had as a child.

My friend hiked mountain trails.
I asked him: have you ever encountered
a bear on your hikes?

He had. Around a corner,
he and Mr. Bear came face to face.
"Oo!" they both said,
staring at each other.

"What did you do?" I asked, enthralled,
(for meeting a bear is not the least scary to me,
compared to humans, because bears
have evolved.)

He looked a little embarrassed,
but I was delighted (and just a little starry-eyed)
 when he replied:
"I sang to the bear! I sang a little,
the bear moved sideways a little,
I went forward a little, I sang some more,
and bit by bit we moved past each other."

I only wish I had thought
to ask him
what song it was that he sang.

for Shay's Word List. Once I saw a bear rock a compact car back and forth until its window popped out, and the bear climbed in. The owner, inside the nearby restaurant fine dining, enjoying the waves rolling in, must have left food in the car. I can only imagine when he came back out. How ever to explain to the car insurance company? And how to extricate the bear?