Bear Stories

Last night I was in the woods. It was getting dark and I was stumbling through the thick brush, tripping with every third step. I could hear my own voice screaming repeatedly, “Andrea, Andrea…” No response. After covering what felt like many miles, I came to a small clearing and saw her. She was face down in the water, lifeless.

I was shaking with tears on my face when I woke. Clearly the dream was a flashback to my Boundary Waters trip, with a very freaky new ending. I texted Andrea this morning to make sure she was fine (I was still a little shaken) and her response was, “I would rather drown than be eaten by a bear…could have been worse.” I chuckled. Oh, the memories...

Andrea and I made our first trip to the BWCA last summer, which climaxed with us standing face to face with a black bear in our camp site. Actually, it went downhill from there, but that was definitely the most memorable part of the experience. For a hilarious play-by-play of our crazy adventure, jump over to Andrea’s blog www.midwestmaineac.blogspot.com/ and start with Boundary Waters, Day 1 (the story is told in five posts).

Funny enough, just as I was finishing my text exchange with Andrea this morning, a work friend stopped by my desk and happened to notice the small rubber black bear that sits by my computer (a gift from Andrea). She asked me if I was following Lily the Bear online.

I had no idea that a black bear from Ely, Minnesota (our BWCA entry point) is an Internet celebrity. Thousands of people are following Lily and her new cub through the web cam in their den, featured on the North American Bear Center’s website. They are even selling I ♥ Lily t-shirts!

I admit, Lily looks pretty cute on the web cam. She is part of the Bear Center's mission to provide balanced and factual information about bears. They state that "attacks are rare and excessive warnings about them create unnecessary fear."

We knew that before we went to the Boundary Waters. Andrea actually has a bear expert in her family who has studied black bears for years. When I mentioned my concern about bears before we went, Andrea assured me that there really was nothing to fear.

That knowledge was meaningless to us when the only thing separating us and an (estimated) 300-pound bear was a food bag. I have never felt that afraid in my life.

I wonder what would have happened if we wouldn't have fled to our canoe. Would the bear have simply ignored us and gone about the business of eating our food? Would he have run away? We weren't about to volunteer for that experiment.

In hindsight, it was an amazing experience seeing a wild bear that close, and watching Lily brings me back to that day on Disappointment Lake with a smile on my face. But still, I hope the web cam view is as close as I ever get to a bear again. The nightmares are real enough.

My Rockin' City

To the outside world, the Twin Cities probably looked like a pretty miserable place to live this weekend. Nothing but cold, gray rain.

Day one of the ick was the perfect excuse to hide in the blankets by the fire and watch a flick with my honey and my kids.

Day two I relied on my winter survival strategy - we escaped to the fifth-annual Rock The Cradle event, hosted by The Current. If you aren't familiar with The Current, you have to check it out (you can stream live on the web from anywhere). It is the Twin Cities' unique public radio station that plays awesome local and indie rock along with some classic favorites. Once you switch to The Current, commercial radio is never the same.

The event brought together thousands of families at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts and the Children's Theatre Company for a disco dance party, musical instrument petting zoo, hands-on art creation, puppetry, live performances and more.

At first we were all a little overwhelmed by the huge crowd, but it soon dispersed some - plus we realized that the museum exhibits served as a wonderful meditative zone between the organized activities.

My daughters especially loved getting to try out a variety of string and percussion instruments, which were provided by the MacPhail Center For Music. I think the highlight for me was identifying all the animals in a huge clay Noah's Ark with my two-year-old son. His only disappointment was that we couldn't bring it home.

The day turned out to be a wonderful mix of fun community activities, quiet walls of art, and quality time with my family.

When we were walking out at the end of the day my husband turned to me and said, "We are so lucky to live in this city."

I couldn't agree more.

One Small Change: Water

Finding a great blog is like making a new friend – as I read each post and discover all of the fresh thoughts and ideas, my mind and soul are filled up in such a delightful way. This week I was introduced to http://www.yogurtandgranola.blogspot.com/, which is authored by a childhood friend of mine named Catherine (Katie, in my mind). I was particularly excited about her post, One Small Change.

The One Small Change project is the brainchild of Hip Mountain Mama (another blog I am thrilled to have just found). In Hip Mountain Mama's words:

"We want to challenge each of you to make one change each month leading up to Earth Day (April 22, 2010). It can be small or it can be huge, but all we ask is that you decide on something you will do to make a positive green impact and follow through with it. If everyone makes four changes between January and April, this can have a huge effect."

I am proud to join Catherine and the hundreds of others who have taken on this challenge. What a perfect fit for my commitment to “be change” this year.

Last night I spent some time thinking about what my first “small change” should be. There wasn't an obvious area of improvement that struck me - we are far from perfect, but we do a pretty good job with environmental conservation in our house. Then it came to me while I was brushing my teeth – with the water running (I shamefully admit).

My one small change for January is turning off the water while I brush my teeth.

I am very embarrassed about this. I’m quite aware that turning off the water while brushing falls into the water conservation 101 category. But, I guess I have been slacking, so now is the time to make this change for good.

Water conservation is an area where we are running out of room for error. I think this concept is sometimes hard for people to grasp because it seems there is water everywhere. But although roughly 70% of the earth is covered with water, only 2.5% of that is fresh, and much of the fresh water is frozen. That leaves just 0.5% of the world’s water as accessible fresh water. And that is depleting by the minute.

The World Bank forecasts that by 2035, more than one-third of the world’s population will be at risk of living in severely water-stressed areas. What does that mean for our children?

I really need to turn off the water when I brush my teeth.

We all need to do that and a whole lot more.

It is encouraging for me to see that some large corporations are dedicated to being part of the solution. I am happy to report that RBC, the parent of the company I work for, has committed $50 million over 10 years for endeavors dedicated to water conservation, watershed protection, access to clean drinking water and other water-related issues.

Locally, I was excited to learn that Minnesota-based Pentair Inc. is building and donating a system to collect, filter, and re-use rain water at Target Field, the new home of the Minnesota Twins. Target Field will require half the water it would have used without this system. It will be the first of its kind in a Major League Baseball stadium – way to set an example, Minnesota!

They are doing their part and I will do mine.

What will your one small change be?

What is the Cost?

Only after the last tree has been cut down.
Only after the last river has been poisoned.
Only after the last fish has been caught.
Only then will you find that money cannot be eaten.
-Cree Indian Prophecy

I don’t want this blog to become the annoying activist type, but I write what I am thinking about and those are the types of issues on my mind today. I am continually troubled by the senseless decisions that our government, most companies, and even my own family (including myself) make because of money.

I find myself repeatedly making choices that are against my principles simply because of the price tag. Just yesterday I filled my fridge with three bags of non-organic produce because of the cost savings. Smart, many would say, because my disposable income is limited. But is it really? What will be the price later of saving a few dollars now?

The cost may be a lot more than money.

First, of course, I have the health of my family to consider. At what point are the chemicals too many? Can I not save money somewhere else so I can put pure food into my children’s bodies? In logical terms the answer seems obvious.

Looking outside my household, what price are we paying when we support the companies that produce these foods? These factory farms are contaminating our environment and squeezing out the small farmers who we want to support. It is the factory farms that are making fresh food unaffordable. The organic farmers are forced to raise prices in order to stay alive and compete.

And I’m just talking produce here. Dig into the issues of processed food and the meat industry and the discussion gets much more scary and complex.

I could spend many hours researching and writing on this topic, but it makes me too sick and worried so instead I will refer to the those who have already done the work. Watch the documentary Food, Inc. Here's the trailer.

I'm thinking its never before been so important to put my money where my mouth is.

My Art

Sometimes I wonder if people question why I spend the time blogging. I think the following quote is the answer. I may not be the most brilliant or creative writer, but writing is definitely my art in these terms:

"Artists need to redefine themselves for themselves so they can educate the people around them to accept the fact that art making is an integral part of who they are as individuals, it is NOT a job, NOT a career, NOT a profession and NOT something you chose. It chooses YOU." ~Sylvia White

And, Oh Yeah, I'm Married

Today while I ate lunch at my desk I jotted down a little list of my favorite memories from 2009. It included many wonderful things like my BWCA wilderness adventure, meeting my celebrity idol, my daughter starting kindergarten, my 35th birthday bash, et cetera, et cetera.

When I first read my list I was all aglow with warm remembrances. But quickly I was stunned to notice that none of my special moments included my husband! I mean, he was there at my party and my kids' events, but they really weren't memories of us as a couple.

Sadly, when I look back on my times with my husband last year they primarily include things like job loss, financial planning, and how-do-we-tell-the-kids discussions. There were none of the vacations and special couples moments that punctuated years past.

We let everything else come first.

I guess I felt it without realizing it, but I'm glad I'm recognizing it now. I refuse to fall into this trap.

I'm going to put some intention into recognizing what happened last year and making some changes. Nice timing that Elizabeth Gilbert's new book "Committed" is just hitting the shelves - I think reading this multi-generational exploration of marriage will help keep my focus where I want it.

This July marks our 10-year wedding anniversary and I'm deciding right now that it is going to be a year-long celebration above all else.

Love you, hon.

Time For Change

For the past few months I have featured this quote from hostage survivor, Ashley Smith, in the header of my blog:

"Life is full of beauty. Notice it. Notice the bumble bee, the small child, and the smiling faces. Smell the rain, and feel the wind. Live your life to the fullest potential, and fight for your dreams.”

I chose that quote for the sentiment of noticing beauty. I believe that taking the time to recognize all of the wonder of the world around us truly adds so much pleasure to life.

But, as I’ve sat back and thought about it, I really don’t think that’s what living a lovely life is all about. I would like to do a whole lot more than just notice beauty.

So, as we move into a new year and a new decade, I have changed my featured quote to a favorite of mine from Mahatma Gandhi:

“Be the change you want to see in the world.”

Now, there’s a lot of change I would like to see in the world and being that I am the breadwinner for a family of five with young children, I am not even going to try to put it all on my shoulders. (Read: no peace rally organization in the near future.) But, I believe there is much that I can do to influence the immediate world around me – namely my family, home, community and environment.

This isn’t a new philosophy – it’s just fine tuning – but I thought this calendar milestone was a good time to put it in writing.

For 2010, I will place my focus on ENJOYING, CREATING and BEING part of the beauty in the world as I continue to live by my mantra: It’s a journey, but I’m choosing to live lovely.