Little Bruno Bear

Chapter Ten Learning from the past

Big Bruno bear looking down at the small cub walking next to him with his head down looking defeated. Big Bruno bear asked what did you learn from the time you got sprayed by a skunk? Little Bruno thought for a bit well after the tomato bath and the the river bath after enduring that smell. I looked if you see two little beady eyes in a dark hole run fast and when you get into nasty things there are consequences that have to be met. Very good son big Bruno told Little Bruno. But when you got sprayed what did you have to go through. And little Bruno thought about that smell staying with him for awhile as him and his mother traveled to a place with large red things mother called tomatoes I had to rub them all over my fur and then walk around with my fur matted up from the juice of those tomatoes and then we made our way to the river and I had to take a bath for awhile. And what did you learn after all of that. That I should learn to listen to mother and learn what she is teaching so when I grow up I will always know what to do.

Okay so when you first got stuck in my brier patch what where you doing? Little Bruno thought about that day he started telling big Bruno how he was moving around under the briers and got stuck and wedged in the plant. And big Bruno asked the little cub if he realized what his mother when through to get him out of the brier patch and little Bruno said no. So you didn’t think about how she had to jump into the brier bush getting stuck by all the briers while pulling you out to safety. Little Bruno looked up with big tears in his eyes. Thinking about what big Bruno had just told him with tears in his eyes little Bruno said no he didn’t realize mother bear never complained about what she had to go through after she saved him. And big Bruno asked the little why she never complained? As little Bruno thought about why his mother never complained it was because she loved him so much that she would with stand any pain.

Okay as big Bruno decided that the cub had plenty to think about for now so he decided to take a break and let little Bruno play in the sun for a bit finding a nice field for little Bruno to play in. As the large bear started to doze off from the relaxing sun beaming down on his fur. Little Bruno started exploring the field coming to a spot where a large hole was that he wondered around coming to that group of rabbits he had seen right after the got lost from his mother. As mother rabbit watching her children playing around a stump in the hole little Bruno slowly snuck up to the stump and sled under the stump and the next thing he knew he was stuck between the ground and the stump. Scaring mother rabbit and her children away poor little Bruno started screaming for help. As big Bruno was fast asleep woke to the cub screaming bloody murder trying to compose himself from his nap big Bruno headed toward the sound finding little Bruno stuck under a stump with his butt in the air unable to move. Big Bruno walked around to the front of the stump where the little cubs head was as he laughed so hard it took him twice as long to lift the stump off of Little Bruno.

As they started back on there trail big Bruno asked little Bruno how he got stuck under the stump. Little Bruno looked up and said thank you for saving me. And big Bruno said your welcome now tell me the story. Well little Bruno started: I saw mother rabbit and her bunnies playing and I wanted to play to so I slowly crawled over to the stump and tried to slide under like the bunnies were doing and I got stuck and they got scared and ran off. And I couldn’t get out and I started screaming and you came and saved me. Big Bruno was still laughing as they walk together big Bruno asked. Did you not realize you are much larger than a rabbit and was not going to fit under that stump like a bunny could? Little Bruno looking down at the ground as they walked and said not until I got stuck did I realize I was to big to fit under that stump. And big Bruno just shook his head still laughing at the cub. Saying son what’s it going to take to teach you to stay out of trouble. Little Bruno said I was just playing with some friends I had met after I got separated from mother. And they big Bruno told the little cub a story about when he was little.

When I was a cub smaller than you I had a sibling we played together day an night in the fields and the streams and pastures. My mother’s name was flora she was beautiful a lot like your mom with fur of auburn and brown and beautiful brown eyes and one of those sweet motherly faces. One day as small cubs do we went off on one of our mischievous adventures playing not paying attention to what was around us we fought in and out of a wood pile. Not paying attention to a large wild cheetah sneaking up on us as we played but thankfully when the large cat pounce we both fell into the wood pile at the cheetah scratched and clawed all the wood he scratched my siblings face which Murphy still wears that scar to this day. But all we could do was try to push farther into the wood pile. And then mother bear came and tore that cheetah from one end of that wood pile to the other as we just watched from under the pile. For weeks mother leaped where that cheetah bit her paw and just because we where playing and not paying attention. Watching my mother hurting as she had to get food for the three of us and watching her clean the brothers wound it helped me to grow realizing what pain we caused our mother that day.

Little Bruno looked at big Bruno and said you caused her mother pain like I caused my mother pain by getting lost and big Bruno said yes son. But the pain I cause my mother was physical and it broke her heart seeing one of her sons injured. A mother loves her children with all of her heart. And son I have always wondered why your mother only had one cub but now I know you my son are a handful all by yourself.