Bears and Blueberries

Mary’s Monday Musings to Quilt Encouragement

Bears and Blueberries

“Stop the Bus.”

“There’s a bear.”

“Where”

“On the left, about ten o’clock.”

To exclamations of delight, and the sound of clicking cameras, our tour bus driver pulled over and the Denali National Park visitors exclaimed and laughed with appreciation. We stood to better watch the roaming Grizzly bear who was feeding in the midst of a wild blueberry field. The bear paid us no attention. Intent on filling up to hibernate for the winter, her large body lumbered around, focused on the plentiful provision for the long, cold days ahead.  What a treat to observe an animal in her natural habitat performing a role repeated by her species every year as winter approaches. We soaked up the sight with the same eagerness she displayed as she munched through the berry field.

The same God that provides food for bears to eat before winter hibernation supplies for us what we need. Just like the bears are faithful to hunt for and eat more than their usual summertime needs as winter approaches, we need to apply ourselves to the tasks we require for our seasons of life. We can keep our eyes open to recognize and utilize God’s provisions for us. By establishing regular routines that help us perform the necessary tasks to look after ourselves and those we are responsible for, we can build a discipline into our days that helps us not only keep up with daily tasks, but allows time we need for the unexpected and unusual opportunities which He gives us from time to time. The bears feast in preparation for winter; but, apparently, they don’t need to adapt emotionally to the new demands of the winter season. They simply sleep the time away. As humans, our seasons of life change and sometimes require new emotional skill sets. If we are alert, we will find God gives us opportunity to practice the skills required by jobs and family ahead of time. We can learn when to open ourselves to new experiences and munch our way through whatever it takes to adapt our thinking to our change of seasons.