Helen Bowell

Bear

It turns out bear isn’t really the word for bear. Petrified of conjuring a hulking, ravenous bear, our ancestors whispered what’s become our oldest, magic-free code-word: brown. When we say bear, what we are really saying is, There’s a brown in the woods. The brown is sleeping. John faced the brown last week, and lived.

Today’s shamans say if you speak kindly to yourself you’ll conjure wellness: I am a good person, I am worthy of love. So why can’t you say it? Go on, say it. Look in the mirror. Utter the spell. Bellow it holding a staff, circling a fire. Say, bear, say, bear, I’m not afraid, say,

I summon you, bear. I am worthy of love. They promise the bear always comes.

First published in Ambit 239 (2020).