My dream of Jobe, the momma grizzly and cub; Six studies of Chicago and the great fire; boy with tire
Saturday, January 8, 2011 at 12:54PM 
Chicago and the great fire - Study # 1: After eating her breakfast in the cold garage, Chicago enters the living room in search of fire and warmth.
Although it had already been going on for awhile and Jobe and I had experienced some great adventures out in the country, the dream now comes sharply into my memory only at that moment when Jobe and I walked out of the woods and into a large, grassy, meadow.
Yes, I say "walked" because in the dream Jobe had grown beyond toddler stage and was able to walk quite nicely all by himself.
As we stepped into the meadow, my eyes were on Jobe and I smiled as he ran ahead of me, until we were separated by about 50 feet. I then turned to my left and was startled to find myself looking right into the eyes of a grizzly bear, standing on all fours, perhaps five feet away from me, staring directly into my eyes.
Chicago and the great fire - Study # 2: Chicago finds fire and warmth.
About 30 or 40 feet beyond her, I could see a cub playing.
Oh, boy! The only way the situation could have been worse would have been if I or Jobe had come between the sow and her cub. Even though we hadn't and that neither of us were in a position to logically threaten the cub, I was not certain just how much logic the momma bear would apply to the situation.
Momma grizzlies are not known to be rational in such a situation. If a momma grizzly perceives a threat, real or imagined, she is going to do all in her power to kill that threat.
Chicago and the great fire - Study # 3
This momma studied me intently, as I tried to keep my eyes on her, the cub and Jobe.
"We mean no harm to you or your cub, Mamma bear," I told her.
Just then, the cub started to bound in a playful way straight towards Jobe.
When the sow saw this she charged, her legs churning hard as she bound straight toward my grandson, fast. She quickly outpaced the cub and then bore down on Jobe. I felt so helpless. I had no gun and I could not run nearly so fast as that momma grizzly could.
Chicago and the great fire - Study # 4: It is a warm fire and that makes it a great fire.
"No, bear!" I shouted out a plea. "No, bear! No, bear!"
The bear quickly reached my little grandson and then stopped right beside him. She brought her nose right to his left cheek and she sniffed. Then she nudged him, gently, almost affectionately.
Then the cub reached them.
Next thing I knew, the three - momma bear, cub and Jobe were walking away from me. They all looked quite happy together.
Chicago and the great fire - Study # 5
I did not know quite what to do. I could not just let Jobe walk off with two bears, no matter how friendly disposed to him they were, but if I were to insert myself in the scene and try to remove Jobe from it, that momma bear just might kill me - and Jobe, too.
It was a hell of a predicament, I tell you.
That's where the dream ends.
Chicago and the great fire - Study # 6: Chicago is content.
And this one from India:
Boy with bicycle tire, as photographed through the open window of a taxi-cab as we passed through his village in southern India.
Reader Comments (7)
wow that is quite a dream, i think Jobe is a special little boy and maybe that is what the bear was trying to tell you,,,,,Chicago looks comfy
Don't you hate when dreams end ambiguously? I think it's a happy story that will have a happy ending.
ah, our irrepressible unconscious! we always wake up scratching our heads about what would come next. loved the pic of chicago entering thru the little door. hey, is that frank sinatra singing 'chicago...chicago...'
The bears were actually trying to make friends with Jobe so that they too could lounge lazily beside Chicago in front of the fire. Or perhaps the dream symbolizes that Sarah Palin wants a playmate for little Trig.
After thinking about it, might I suggest just letting a couple grizzlies in your house. Might be the safest bet.
Telling that dream to some of your native friends might result in them telling you what it means. A very strong image, Jobe walking with the bears.
The dream reminded me of a Tlingit story--where a woman marries a bear and lives with bears.
Wow, that intense, I got chills thinkn about it! But Jobe is of the Bear clan on his Apache side so maybe that's why they befriended him b/c he's one of them...I'll give hugs to Jobe for you.