Bears

From deep within the Archives. A composite of some ancient carved wooden bears and picture of a pine forest. A story is attached, if you can bear to read it...

Description for my "2 Bears" picture

Early the following morning, they broke camp and continued their journey through the forest. A light mist had risen and they followed what seemed to be a path through the pine trees, soon arriving at a small clearing.

Off to their right, they noticed something moving through the misty undergrowth and they paused, standing quite still behind a large old pine tree.

Little Mishka, the bear cub, was hungry. Ahead, he saw a small clearing and thought there may be some of his favourite mushrooms to find there and ease his hunger pangs. As he foraged through the clumps of grass, he came closer and closer to where the still figures stood in the shadows, unaware as yet of their presence.

Mother Medveditsa wondered where her cub had disappeared to. He was always up to some mischief! Suddenly, her nose twitched and her nostrils flared. What was that familiar smell? Of course! Humans!

Mishka, even though he may have detected that smell, would not have been aware of what potential dangers it held.

She lumbered out of the undergrowth, then ran at a surprisingly fast pace, into the clearing. There was Mishka, oblivious to the Humans, pawing at a clump of grass to uncover some young, sweet mushrooms.

Mother Medveditsa ran up behind her cub and stopped, protecting him with her body and huge paws. She snarled menacingly at the Humans.

They stood stock still in the shaddow of the large pine tree. One of them had raised a strange black object to his eye....
* * * * * * * * * * * *

This is the story suggested to me, at least, by this picture.

Here, I have tried to combine an image taken in a pine forest near Wentworth Falls, in the Blue Mountains of NSW Australia, with some pictures - taken in a variety of poses - of two genuine carved Russian bears. They belong to a long time friend and companion of mine, with whom I had shared many adventures in times gone by and more recently on some 4WD journeys to the Victorian Alps and to see Lake Eyre, South Australia, in flood.

This compositon is dedicated to him. His name is Michael and in Russian, his pet name is Misha or Mishka, the most familiar and "affectionate" form. Without these bears, the picture would be incomplete and lack the essence of our Russian heritage.

(In Russian, "medved" means "bear" in the masculine gender. "Medveditsa" is the feminine.)

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