A Sad Morning for Lily The North American Black Bear and Her Fans

Lily

The North American Black Bear

and

the littlest cub

Jason

April 9, 2011

and yesterday

Little Jason

died April 12, 2011

out there near that wonderful

training tree that they went to together

after leaving the den;

Jason, just a wee cub

who appeared to have

what we humans would call

"failure to thrive".

A darling little one

He Was

with a little sister named

FAITH

Little Jason was the smallest of the two

born to

our Lily,

this winter

in a den

that the world has watched

along with our other miracle

Lily's other cub, now a yearling

HOPE.

OH MY

they were quite something to behold

and to watch and hear in that den;

the cries were almost human

as they expressed their desires

for time for food,

time for more warmth, less warmth,

time to explore a bit

or to turn over

or

for some attention from big sister

HOPE.

https://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DwS3rTK2Ut4I&h=18108

Fears were expressed in the beginning of how

would an inter-generational denning

work

with Lily giving birth with Hope in the den?

Would she think this a threat and want or do harm

to these babies

or

would she view them as new play toys

or

would she try to "mother them"

or

be a sterling example of

HOPE and love!

Well as it turns out

HOPE

just loved her little brother and sister

but

she too loved to nurse

on Lily

and then to make those sounds

that were oh so much like that of

"helicopter HOPE"

while the littles just purred and made their own distinct

sounds as well.

Thousands clicked on the live web cam.

And as the warm weather came

out there in Ely MN

Lily meandered outside of the den

with

HOPE on her heels

only to discover the PVC pipe holding the microphone

and proceeded to gnaw on it

to lick the lens of the camera

and

otherwise

get Dr Rogers on the snowmobile

to make some adjustments.

As he arrived we all watched in wonder

as Lily lumbered out of the den,

followed by HOPE to the familiar sound of

"IT'S ME BEAR, DON'T WORRY, IT'S ME"

and

don't ya just know,

they both wandered over to give

their human friend a sniff and lick of loving!

Well of course they were also hoping for some

nuts (filberts) or whatever he happened to have in his trusty pockets. Even HOPE was not a skittish yearling but recognized he was the voice and the beard that her Mom had said was the one to trust.

As we all watched from the computer,

we witnessed the

little ones as they waddled out of the den

Faith and Jason

making their debut

a bit unsteady

but ever so brave as well.

I'm thinking that HOPE

had been telling them all about

"It's me and the potential of nuts and grapes"

and the famous

"It's me Bear" that they would at some point be hearing

when the snows made it possible.

So

next thing you know

they both made their way out of the den,

each coming right toward

Dr Lynn Rogers

on none other than St Patricks Day

and oh one can only imagine his sheer delight

of that gift

as he got down on the ground with that camera of his

and while talking softly

just clicked away.

Lily would make a few come close moments

but after her initial close encounter to him

it appeared she did that to let him know,

"Listen now, I am trusting you with my kids here doc,

do not betray the trust ok"

haha

From time to time

Lily would wander near by,

HOPE would try to crawl over the newly propped PCP

pipe and at one time snuck quickly and tried to make off with a bag of grapes that were laying down on the ground.

BUT

the most remarkable thing was when Faith and Jason

just walked right up to Dr Rogers as he lay near the den waiting.

and then...

He reached down and picked on of them up!

OH my goodness what a  moment that was

Lily was watching,

but did nothing

a sure sign of complete trust.

As Dr Rogers sat the little one down after speaking and guesstimating the weight

I believe the other wanted their time as well.

so with a skilled and gentle hand

the next little cub was up close to his beard

being loved on and touched

by skilled but gentle hands

and HOPE was watching closely

(I'm thinking she was wondering how to reclaim the grapes that he took back myself)

more than trying to protect the babe!

Just as gently he sat the little one down on the ground

as Lily came over to let Dr Rogers know

this was enough,

introductions had been made

and

now it was enough of all of this now!

What an amazing site to behold indeed.

As Dr Rogers finished with the cam for the live

viewing in the den

we heard him say

"thank you bears"

and of course the fans thought that just the greatest thing ever.

http://www.bear.org/

for updates, and for information and videos.

It is sad that little Jason has died

there at the base of that lovely tree

but

many felt that he was weak, having been seen having trouble keeping up with Faith as they left the den

some wondering if it was too soon for Lily to take the cubs and leave.

BUT

seems Lily knew what she was doing as 24 hours later the den was soaking wet

since the snow out there has melted

and water now has taken place of what was once dry bedding

spring is making its entrance.

Nature is cruel at times,

its survival of the fittest in many instances

and

I think HOPE tried her best to give Jason strength

as she often would put him in her mouth

and carry him

other times it seemed

as though

she had him in her mouth

breathing her very life breath into him

to give him some added energy

and strength

from his big sister with such bear spirit.

The Creator makes no mistakes out there in the woods

of beauty,

and

perhaps little Jason was just too fragile

too little for the journey of spring

and

discovery

that is ahead for the bears now,

he was able to close his little eyes and sleep

knowing he was under the watchful eyes

of the

Bear spirits

and

the Bear Researchers who

made the decision to not intervene

and

who's

State License tied their hands anyways

out there in Ely MN.

As painful as it is to do nothing

sometimes the kindest thing

to do

is to just

BE

and to care

enough to stand by.

As I see it this morning

the only thing they could have done even better

is to have used that cell phone of theirs

and

have kept their ADMINS

and fans

updated

so that everyone could have been on the same page

in their grief, their sadness

so that their would have not have to be shock or

reactions many hours later

or today

when folks are just about to read about it.

That way

all would have had to process the information at the same

time and not have to play catch up.

But

people don't know what they don't know

and

hindsight continues to be 20/20.

I can only hope that the ADMINS and MODS

are not the brunt of the hurt/angst/frustration

of

hearing that the baby cub Jason

could not survive

in the wild.

Interesting how this goes with thoughts of the week

life can be like a

firefly in the night

so very fragile,

so very important

that we hold on to what and those that are important

while letting go of that which is not

along with opinions of attitudes

and ideas of which we have no control

or rumors or things

that can attempt to ruin a good day.

It can be gone or taken away

in a snap

>>

We Need Faith

this is

FAITH (Jason's twin sis)

notice those paws and nails and those eyes!

HOld tight Faith

hold on friends

to

HOPE and FAITH

today

and all days

during great times of sadness, joys

and confusing times as well.

Lean in to others

Stand tall

within

The Universal oneness that is The Creator

within

knowing

that

together we are strong

even during times of wonder, times of pain

and confusion

we are at our best

when we remain

kind and compassionate

and

Understanding to all.

STOMP

><

The fire is burning with sage of healing, hope, kindness and compassion on the winds to all who gather here.

Blessings to each of you.

Little Jason the North American Black Bear is now joined with so many, with spirits to welcome him home to a vast wonderful play land of trees and woods and tumbles.

Walk in beauty

honor and cherish all

DRSES

author of Healing Heartaches

http://www.drsherryeshowalter.com/