The Bear and the River

I was in between sleep and awake when I heard an unfamiliar sound. “Could that have been a rock falling off the deck?” I wonder in my still sleepy state. With the next noise and a little more awake I think “Hmm…Is it a bear?” I jump out of bed and hurry down stairs to see if I can get a glimpse. Crossing the kitchen, my eyes start to adjust to the still dark morning; I look out the front glass door and windows to see a massive figure. “Yes, definitely a bear”. He’s about six feet tall and standing on his hind legs looking for the birdfeeder that he somehow knows is usually there. I’m now, as quietly as possible, moving closer to the door and thinking “I can’t believe he is right here”. He reaches further up the A frame looking for the birdfeeder and probably wondering to himself, “I know it was here when I came by a few days ago?” I’m now on one side of the glass door and he is on the other still standing and still searching. I’m in awe of his massive size and amazed to see him so closely. The pre-dawn sky is just starting to let enough light seeps through for me to see him clearly as he continues his exploration. Later in the summer he will be the lucky one and find a fully filled feeder on a night we forget to bring it in. But this morning it is my turn as I’m the one who gets to observe this beautiful creature so close. It is a treat, one I do not take for granted. Suddenly I shift my weight and the floor creaks just enough to alert him to my presence. He never misses a beat, from two hind legs to all fours, no startling, no jolting, not turning toward me he turns away and heads for the stairs. An amazing sense of a flowing river but it is a flowing bear. Down the stairs, across the land and into the darkness he flows. The smoothness of that moment touches me, stays with me. He knew I was there, but he never reacted only shifted course. It felt like a river in motion, just the most natural thing in the world, effortless as it rounds a bend heads for the next stretch, not rushing just rolling along. And so he went.

I’m mostly struck by the grace I witnessed. A grace I would like to lead my way as I head for the next stretch. Not rushing, not reacting just flowing along knowing all is well. The bear and the river the image I hold as a guide as I come around the next bend not knowing what lies ahead.