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Author Topic: Dreaming Wisdom in Winter's Womb  (Read 2606 times)

entwife

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Dreaming Wisdom in Winter's Womb
« on: December 16, 2011, 10:54:44 pm »
Snow falls in gentle drifts
blanketing the World
in icy splendor.
Listen to Her rumbling voice,
Powerful and tender,
as through her dreams
she sifts…


“Cradled by a womb of Earth,
I will teach you to Dream True,
Think first,
Choose wisely,
and act with strength…
to Go Within for all answers,
to be a Mother to all,
including yourself..
to Heal through introspection and rebirth!


Feed upon armored wisdom
and the golden sweetness of Life!
Look to the Standing People
in moments of reflection,
danger,
doubt,
or strife.
See me with my child
roaming the nightly skies?
You have but to ask,
and I will most wisely advise.

My robes are plain,
nor is Winter
always my season of Dreaming,
as some may claim.

I may appear to you
Black,
as the star-studded Sky.
Brown,
as the skin of Mother Earth,
or White
as the snow
tucking in all who await
Spring's rebirth.


Gentle
as a summer breeze.
Powerful
as a winter storm.
Home is where
we’re most at ease
to slumber…
dream deep…
and transform!


I will show you
how to live
in perfect Tao..”


Who Sings Now?




Each singing poem is inspired by a Teacher found in Nature; a star, stone, plant, animal etc that holds Wisdom for those who listen. Can you guess who is singing?
« Last Edit: December 16, 2011, 10:57:44 pm by entwife »
Wishing you laughter

Oaksworn

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Re: Dreaming Wisdom in Winter's Womb
« Reply #1 on: December 17, 2011, 12:29:31 am »
Quote from: entwife;35085
Who Sings Now?

 
I'm going to say Bear, the Healer.
Reality is but perception.

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Re: Dreaming Wisdom in Winter's Womb
« Reply #2 on: December 17, 2011, 03:33:29 am »
Quote from: Oaksworn;35095
I'm going to say Bear, the Healer.

 
That's my guess as well.
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Re: Dreaming Wisdom in Winter's Womb
« Reply #3 on: December 17, 2011, 05:05:59 pm »
Quote from: Morag;35107
That's my guess as well.

 
Thirded!

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entwife

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Re: Dreaming Wisdom in Winter's Womb
« Reply #4 on: December 17, 2011, 10:08:08 pm »
Quote from: entwife;35085
Snow falls in gentle drifts
blanketing the World
in icy splendor.
Listen to Her rumbling voice,
Powerful and tender,
as through her dreams
she sifts…


“Cradled by a womb of Earth,
I will teach you to Dream True,
Think first,
Choose wisely,
and act with strength…
to Go Within for all answers,
to be a Mother to all,
including yourself..
to Heal through introspection and rebirth!


Feed upon armored wisdom
and the golden sweetness of Life!
Look to the Standing People
in moments of reflection,
danger,
doubt,
or strife.
See me with my child
roaming the nightly skies?
You have but to ask,
and I will most wisely advise.

My robes are plain,
nor is Winter
always my season of Dreaming,
as some may claim.

I may appear to you
Black,
as the star-studded Sky.
Brown,
as the skin of Mother Earth,
or White
as the snow
tucking in all who await
Spring's rebirth.


Gentle
as a summer breeze.
Powerful
as a winter storm.
Home is where
we’re most at ease
to slumber…
dream deep…
and transform!


I will show you
how to live
in perfect Tao..”


Who Sings Now?




"Remember the quiet wonders. The world has more need of them than it has for warriors." ~Charles DeLint

"Our life is composed greatly from dreams, from the unconscious, and they must be brought into connection with action. They must be woven together." Anais Nin

"Life is like art. You have to work hard to keep it simple and still have meaning." ~Charles De Lint

Bagheera: "Now this takes brains, not brawn."
Baloo: "You better believe it and I'm loaded with both!"


Grandmother Bear walks the skies with her beloved Cub to remind us of many things. There is a sacred connection between Mother/Father/Elder and Child. Respect, Love, Gratitude, Learning, Trust, and Nurturing should flow in both directions between these people. Sadly, not every child, parent or elder has the benefit of forming good connections between all of these supports. However, it is undeniable that the more of these strong and balanced connections a child has, the better the chances are that he or she will become a strong balanced adult working to live a good life. In this way, we can best carry Society forward.

There are many varieties of Bear; black, brown, sun, spectacled and pandas just to name the most easily recognizable. Perhaps the most common here in North America would be the Black Bear, although it is most often Grizzlies that people think of when speaking about this amazing Creature Teacher. Polar Bears, like other specially adapted Creatures, carry additional messages and wisdom. Here I will focus primarily on the Brown or Grizzly bear.

The potent motherly protection embodied by Bear is so well noted that it has become a common misconception that Any bear will attack someone who is "threatening" their cub. Actually this behavior rightly belongs to the mighty Grizzly and not the Black Bear that is found only in North America. Researchers have been known to scoop up a squalling black bear cub right in the face of its approaching mother without receiving so much as a scratch! It is estimated that there have been only 56 documented killings of humans by black bears in North America in the past 100 years. While rare, these attacks are typically predatory.


"Relegating grizzlies to Alaska is about like relegating happiness to heaven; one may never get there".~ Aldo Leopold


Both Grizzlies and Kodiaks (my personal favorite) are Brown bears.The Kodiak bear has lived on Kodiak, Afognak, and Shuyak Islands in southwestern Alaska for thousands of years with absolutely no contact with any other bears. Brown bears take in a territory of around 10 to 380 square miles, depending on their size. Berries and fruits of all sorts, roots, bulbs, ground dwelling rodents, whitebark pine nuts,army cutworm moths, carrion, moose, elk, deer, bison, insects (like termite mounds or beehives), mountain goats and sheep all make up the diet of Brown Bear. Coastal Brown Bears, like Kodiaks, also feed heavily on salmon and are likely to be larger than inland bears. All Brown Bears also have a distinctive hump around their shoulders, much like Bison, and with the same totemic values. There is an enormous amount of stored strength there, but it will require our own actions and hard work to achieve desired results.

Grizzlies range in color from white, blonde, brown, black and shades thereof.  The tips of most fur are lighter in color giving them a grizzled effect. Brown bears can weigh 150-200 pounds at the end of their first year of life. Females reach 270 to 770 pounds by eight years, and males can be a whopping one or two times that weight when full grown! They reach sexual maturity between 4 and 5 years and are considered fully grown by 8 to 10 years of age.Kodiak bears can grow to 10 feet long and weigh over 1,000 lbs. Like other bears, the greater a females weight, the greater her chance of conceiving and successfully delivering cubs. Likewise, the larger the male the more likely he is to mate. The number of cubs also depends upon weight of the mother. A mother brown bear will remain with her young for 1 ½ to 3 ½ years.

While they will feed socially where food is plentiful, bears are typically solitary creatures and do not stay together for long. Bear people, while often charming, tend to be shy, quiet, and/or reclusive too; homebodies. Brown is the color of Earth, and Bear's four legs reminds us the importance of being properly grounded. The more "out of control" a Bear feels the more likely they are to react with devastating effect. A bear "hug" is noted for it's lethal power and Grizzlies have been known to take down large powerful Elk or Moose with their might paws. Bear people should be mindful of their strength, physically, emotionally, and verbally. I have seen those who lash out in anger or fear. I have also seen those Bear people who are so balanced and self-confident that they can handle a potentially explosive situation by changing from a "smaller" less intimidating posture to a "larger" more cowing presence. Merely by exerting their powerful presence, a Bear can take control of a room full of people!


Bears, for example, tend to be very responsible individuals. Feeling guilty and overly responsible for circumstances beyond their control, say loosing a job through downsizing and being unable to support the family, are potentially very self-destructive situations for Bear people. They feel, against all reason, that they have "failed" and beat themselves up internally. All too soon, they begin to feel hurt and betrayed by loved or trusted individuals who have likewise "let them down" by not living up to such unreasonable expectations. In some cases, these attitudes would only result in depression, anger, blame, etc, but in others in can actually result in aggression and abuse. Bears are powerful and Bear people should be ever mindful of their thoughts, actions, and words.

After mating in spring, the female has only a few months to store away large deposits of fat before she needs to den in the fall.  She must gain up to 440 lbs of fat in order to have a successful pregnancy! In spring and summer, the pregnant bear will feed upon ringed seal pups that have been recently weaned.  This super abundance of seals enables the female to accumulate fat quickly (Stirling 1990). In late October the pregnant bear will come ashore and walk from snowbank to snowbank until she finds an appropriate place to build her den (Stirling 1990).  Dens are usually single chambers, slightly elevated from the entrance tunnel so warmer air remains with mother and cubs.  The den is usually about 6 ½ feet by 5 feet in size, and approximately 3 feet in height (Stirling 1990).  Entrance tunnels are long and narrow – about 2 feet in diameter.  Some bears will occasionally dig a 2 or 3-room "complex" (Stirling 1990). Two-thirds of all births result in twins.  Single cubs account for 20-30% of all births.  Triplets do occur but in most cases one of the cubs does not survive.Young are born in late November through early January weighing between 1 and 1-½ lbs.  Like other bears, their eyes are closed at birth, and male cubs are usually larger than the female cubs


Cubs learn from their mother by watching and copying her movements and behavior.  They watch everything she does and will also sniff the same places their mother has sniffed.  When the mother begins to stalk for food, the cubs will lie down and not move until she is finished her hunt.  They remain patient and well behaved.  Occasionally when a cub becomes "rowdy" the mother will cuff the cub, and vocalize.  The cub soon learns to remain silent and observe the mother's movements.  Yearlings and 2-year-old cubs hunt approximately 4 - 7% of the time.  Mother bears spend 35% of their time hunting (Stirling 1990). All Bears have a tendency to "mother" or gravitate toward a teaching role. The trick is not to be too heavy handed in such a role and know when, where and how to let go. You don't "protect" a child by never allowing them to do anything for themselves or make their own decisions or mistakes. You don't help a friend, co-worker, relative or spouse by criticizing them or being too assertive. Bear people need to remember to lighten up and not take everything too seriously all the time. Sometimes relaxing, doing nothing but enjoying life, is the most necessary action we can take. White is the color of purity, protection, blessings, wisdom and overall healing. While not a Polar bear, remember the words of Baloo from Disney's The Jungle Book...



"And don't spend your time lookin' around
For something you want that can't be found
When you find out you can live without it
And go along not thinkin' about it
I'll tell you something true
The bare necessities of life will come to you!

Look for the bare necessities
The simple bare necessities
Forget about your worries and your strife
I mean the bare necessities
Old Mother Nature's recipes
That brings the bare necessities of life!"



The length and depth of hibernation is genetically programmed to match the regional norms of food availability. In northern states where food is scarcer, bears may hibernate for up to seven months deeply enough to not awaken even after being prodded or shaken, but in southern states where food is more readily available year round bears may not hibernate at all. Unlike smaller hibernating animals, bears are able to stay in this state without rousing themselves every few days to defecate and raise body temps over 94 degrees. Highly efficient hibernators, bears sleep for months without eating, drinking, urinating, or defecating!   Black bears have far more insulating pelts and have lower surface to mass ratios than the smaller hibernators.  As a result, bears' body heat is lost very slowly, enabling them to cut their metabolic rate in half and still make it through winter, maintaining temperatures above 88 degrees--within 12 degrees of their normal summer temperature. Mother bears wake from hibernation to birth cubs and will take excellent care of them throughout the rest of their hibernating period, responding to cries and movement. While a cub is conceived during the summer months, it's embryo will remain dormant until the mother reaches her hibernation state that year, around which time the embryo will attach to the uterine wall and begin developing.

Hibernation, periods of solitude and retreat, and other introspective/self-nuturing actions are vital to a Bear's well being. Bear people tend to take their time when making decisions, sometimes too much time! However, it is always wise to take the time to properly examine and contemplate a situation before deciding on what the correct action should be in that given circumstance. Bear people just need to remember that sometimes it is just as vital to retreat forpleasure and re-energizing, as it is is to make a decision or take an action. Bear people tend to go and go until they drop right off the edge, sometimes right into sleep! Take a step back and give yourself some breathing room.

"Dreams are answers to questions we haven't yet figured out how to ask."  ~X-Files

Dreams are illustrations... from the book your soul is writing about you.  ~Marsha Norman
I think we dream so we don't have to be apart so long.  If we're in each other's dreams, we can play together all night.  "~Bill Watterson, Calvin & Hobbes~

"Dream True"~ Charles De Lint

Obviously, Bears are great Dreamers, infamous for their ability to hibernate. Lucid dreaming and Dreamtime in general are popular stomping grounds for Bear and Bear people. It is most often through our Dreams that Bear will reach through to alert, teach or heal us. Most likely this is because it is only during this state of swimming through our own unconscious are we truly receptive. For example, when there is something "wrong" or "bad" in our lives, we are more likely to see, understand and accept it on an unconscious level first. Many times people will rail to others and themselves that they knew "somehow" a spouse was cheating, a child was in trouble, a friend was betraying trust, or grandmother was dying.

These types of truths are painful. During our conscious states, how many of us would want to accept that our spouse is unfaithful, a beloved child doing illegal or dangerous things, or a cherished elder preparing to leave us forever? Even if the subtle evidence we have picked up on is true, most people will resist such painful types of Truth at least once before exploring the possibility consciously. As always, pay attention to your dreams and intuitions! Painful or not, it will only get steadily worse if we continue to reject Truth. Keep a notebook and pen, or a recording device beside your bed to immediately capture first impressions upon waking. Like the High Priestess card in a Tarot deck, whatever questions and turmoils are currently stirring in your life, if you look within you will find the answer you already knew in your intuitive heart to be True.

Bear reminds us to "find our north"; to find, define, practice and remain true to our guiding principles. It should be obvious that if you are practicing beliefs which are harmful or infringe on the rights of another being, than they can't be in harmony with the Universe and Truth in it's largest sense. In the rich, warm and creative environment of Dreams, Bear can help us to a deeper understanding of ourselves and our world, clearer vision, better decisions, boosting our adaptive abilities, and the strength to act on what needs attention.

"To thine own self be true, and it must follow, as the night the day, thou canst not then be false to any man." ~Shakespeare

"The best people are like water. They benefit all things, and do no compete with them. They settle in low places, one with Nature, one with Tao." ~ Lao Tzu


A balanced Bear in general is a Great Teacher and represents everything truly respected in a Leader; wisdom, moderation, fair and sound decision making skills, intuition, nuturing, modesty/humility, strength, mindfulness of community, honesty and charm. Considered a strong feminine energy, Bear is much desired for males. A man's role in life is meant to be protective towards those who are loved and cherished. To properly fufill that role a man must be both powerful and decisive, and loving and humble. When reading Profiles in Wisdom: Native Elders speak about the Earth by Steve McFadden, I read something which really clicked with me. I don't have the exact quote at hand, nor do I remember which Elder actually said it, (I'll fill that in when I can check it at the library again). However, the gist of what she said was... When the men in our lives forget or are incapable of nurturing (a woman's goal in life), our own protective natures are awoken and we try to take on their role. This only throws us all further off balance as the longer and harder women try to take on the Protector roles, the more likely we are to forget our own nurturing selves.

The World needs more Compassion and attitudes of Universal Love, which are feminine strengths. Strong protective instincts are a wonderful quality, however we should never forget  that our best defense is not aggressive, but compassionate! We must be as nurturing and loving with ourselves as we should be with the world at large, and this is a constant balancing act. I suppose it is because Life can be very harsh, and People don't always think about their instinctive reactions and interactions with the World. However, quite contrary to what most folks seem to believe, Compassion in its' proper place and time is a tremendous strength. Steady Bear in all her forms can show us how best to develop this nurturing environment for ourselves, and how to share this creative, evolving positive energy with the World.

Mother bears may be a bit gruff, but they expect attention from their "cubs" if they truly wish to learn how best to survive in this life, as evidenced by Polar bear cubs bright eyed, obedient and attentive silence as she hunts. The Jungle Book's beloved Baloo the bear was a jovial and loving Teacher to young Mowgli, but even he knew that there comes a time when we must let our "cub" go off on their own to make their own way in life. Bear people need to realize this too. Unbalanced bear people may be making too many decisions for others, children or otherwise, even if they feel that they are doing so out of loving and positive intentions. Aggression, violence, self-destructive behavior, and even, in rare cases, cannibalism (like other totems, Primate for example) are another spectrum of unbalanced Bear symptoms.

"With courage you will dare to take risks, have the strength to be compassionate, and the wisdom to be humble. Courage is the foundation of integrity." Keshavan Nair

" Love is to let those we love be perfectly themselves, and not to twist them to fit our own image... otherwise we love only the reflection of ourselves we find in them. " ~Author Unknown

"You'll discover that real love is millions of miles past falling in love with anyone or anything. When you make that one effort to feel compassion instead of blame or self-blame, the heart opens again and continues opening." "As you continue to send out love, the energy returns to you in a regenerating spiral... As love accumulates, it keeps your system in balance and harmony. Love is the tool, and more love is the end product."  ~Sara Paddison, Hidden Power of the Heart


Wise, courageous, and loving, Grandmother and Grandfather Bear sit in the North to remind us always to turn with Gratitude and Love towards each new challenge in life. North is the direction of kindness, gratitude, purification, protection, and Divine energy. Strength, stamina, peaceful warriors, and physical protection are represented by the direction North and the color white, and sometimes purple. With age comes wisdom. The more "snow" an Elder has on their roof, the more they are due our respect. Bear reminds us that it is our sacred duty to respect, care for, and protect Elders, Children and Women. These qualities are also why Men sit in this position on the Medicine Wheel. Bear, men, deer, women, wolf, children, bison, elder, the elements, the directions, Divinity...we all have our place on the wheel, none higher or lower than the other. All worthy of respect, and desirous of Love.


Balance is not an easy thing to maintain, and we all take a wrong step, stumble or even crash dramatically upon occasion. However, the abundance of disrespect around the World is a clear sign of just how out of balance we, collectively, have become. More than any other totem for me, Bear teaches us to "go within" to the "cave" of our soul and examine our selves for ways to nurture and practice these positive attitudes in our lives. It is not easy to think or act charitably towards those who harm us in some way, even if it is as simple as a case of someone who's behavior annoys us, let alone those who do true and malicious damage to our lives. It is easy to respond instinctively, and devastatingly, like a "grumpy bear" just rousing from hibernation. Yet, we do not truly want to invite such destruction into our own lives, and must strive always to respond with the wisdom, kindness, humility, and courage of a truly a truly Awakened Bear. Bear people should be especially careful of anything altering their sleep patterns (snoring, sleep disorders, poor sleeping conditions, etc), heart problems, and unhealthy weight gain, as well as aggression or acts of violence (either delivered or tolerated). These things will attack the body, mind and even the spirit of a balanced bear, causing severe changes in behavior and mood, and are ultimately the bullets which will bring a Bear down.

Bears at their best are much needed in these troubled times. A loving and balanced view between Sense and Sensibility is a Bear trademark and should be not only sought after, but encouraged to develop at every stage in life.  We all experience metaphorical Winter's, or find the need to retreat into our own sacred space for contemplation or renewal from time to time. Bear shows us how best to utilize and live through these times. This piece is lovingly devoted to the Bears in my own life, grumpy or otherwise, with the hope that we might all cultivate a "bear necessities" attitude in our lives! How does Bear appear in your life?


"I have learned silence from the talkative, toleration from the intolerant, and kindness from the unkind; yet, strange, I am ungrateful to those teachers." ~Kahlil Gibran


"(The) Great suffer hours of depression through introspection and self-doubt. That is why they are great. That is why you will find modesty and humility the characteristics of such men." ~Bruce Barton


"The philosophy of the wisest man that ever existed, is mainly derived from the act of introspection." ~William Godwin



Works sited:
Stirling and Guravich. Polar Bears. 1990. 1st edition.
Brown 1993, Gary. The Great Bear Almanac. 1993.

Lynch 1993, Wayne. Bears- Monarchs of the Northern Wilderness. 1993. 1st edition. (the Mountaineers Publishing Co.)

A Few Possible Balancing Energies:

Salmon
Berries
Trees (Standing People) and other Plants
Ants
Snakes
Hawks, Owls and other Raptors
Turtles
Rabbits
Bees and other Insects
Wishing you laughter

entwife

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Re: Dreaming Wisdom in Winter's Womb
« Reply #5 on: December 17, 2011, 10:09:31 pm »
Quote from: Oaksworn;35095
I'm going to say Bear, the Healer.
Well done, got it in one! Which clues within the poem did you find helpful to you?

Thanks for playing everyone! Hope you enjoyed the read :)

wishing you laughter
Wishing you laughter

Stardancer

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Re: Dreaming Wisdom in Winter's Womb
« Reply #6 on: December 18, 2011, 03:52:18 pm »
Quote from: entwife;35187

Thanks for playing everyone! Hope you enjoyed the read :)

wishing you laughter

 
Thankyou very much for this one. Someone associated me with Bear many years ago, but I never really _got_ it. The poem and the description was very enlightening. :)
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entwife

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Re: Dreaming Wisdom in Winter's Womb
« Reply #7 on: December 20, 2011, 11:35:49 pm »
Quote from: Stardancer;35296
Thankyou very much for this one. Someone associated me with Bear many years ago, but I never really _got_ it. The poem and the description was very enlightening. :)


So very glad you enjoyed, and found it helpful to you! Being likened to Bear, as you might imagine, is quite a compliment :o) Even grumpy bears :D:
Wishing you laughter

Oaksworn

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Re: Dreaming Wisdom in Winter's Womb
« Reply #8 on: December 20, 2011, 11:49:00 pm »
Quote from: entwife;35187
Well done, got it in one! Which clues within the poem did you find helpful to you?


Thanks, you made this one pretty clear.  :)

Let's see, the clues that jumped out most for me were:

Quote
Listen to Her rumbling voice,
Powerful and tender,
as through her dreams
she sifts…

“Cradled by a womb of Earth,
I will teach you to Dream True,


That read of hibernation to me.

Quote
Feed upon armored wisdom


 Seemed to speak to me of living off the energy stores they had ingested prior to hibernation.

Quote
See me with my child
roaming the nightly skies?


Ursa Major and Ursa Minor

Quote

My robes are plain,
nor is Winter
always my season of Dreaming,
as some may claim.


I remembered learning at one point that bears will actually wake during their hibernation if it was necessary to feed and such.

Quote
I may appear to you
Black,
as the star-studded Sky.
Brown,
as the skin of Mother Earth,
or White
as the snow


Black bear, brown bear, polar bear.

Honestly, though, for some reason your intent came through loud and clear with this poem.  I don't always get who's Singing but I couldn't mistake this one.
Reality is but perception.

entwife

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Re: Dreaming Wisdom in Winter's Womb
« Reply #9 on: December 27, 2011, 11:18:18 pm »
Quote from: Oaksworn;35645
Thanks, you made this one pretty clear.  :)
Honestly, though, for some reason your intent came through loud and clear with this poem.  I don't always get who's Singing but I couldn't mistake this one.


Thanks very much for the feedback, Greatly Appreciated! It happens that way for a lot of folks, the Singer just reaches out to them in an impossible to miss kinda way lol Feedback always makes it easier for me to craft the next piece though, and figure out solid clues to mark each piece.

This particular poem is about Bear in general rather than focusing on a specific species, some of which don't hibernate at all! Most polar bears don't reach a state of true hibernation, for example (pregnant polar bears being the exception). Neither do Pandas. Certain conditions will keep a bear from hibernation too, like not putting on enough weight. Many readers had difficulty spotting Bear in this piece, and on reflection, I felt that it focused more on Bear lessons than on more obvious clues. So, I added a bit here and there, and threw in the verse mentioning Bear coloring. It seems to have done the trick :) Until next time... wishing you laughter
Wishing you laughter

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