As much as I enjoy being a bear, I did not actually choose to be a bear. I did not choose to be an anything. I do not even remember starting to be.

It seems unfair that I had (to the best of my knowledge) no input into what I would be for the entirety of my being. I did not even get to customize the thing (a bear) I would become. Nobody asked me how many legs I would like to have, whether or not I wanted wings, or if the number of teeth a bear has would be enough for me.

I do wonder what I would choose if I got a chance to determine these kinds of things.

Despite the initial thought, I do not think I would like to have more legs. Four seem to be plenty, and I can get lots of things done with the number of legs I currently have (walking, climbing, swimming, feeling mud, etc.).

I think I would like to have more toes, however. I like the toes I have, but imagine if I had more. More small digits to spread apart and let relax in the cool soil. I could also put more rocks in between my toes. I do not have to do that necessarily, but it might be nice.

Another nose? Is that too extreme? I love to smell things, but do I need to smell double the things with double the intensity? That has the potential to be nauseating, but it might be intriguing to smell the most intricate of smells or the deepest of smells I already like (moss and tree bark and such).

It would be nice to have more fur. Or interesting colored fur with lovely designs. I do love my dark, shiny coat, but having some stripes or strange colors in my tuft would be neat, though not practical in any manner.

Maybe it is best I did not get to pick and choose when it comes to my being, however. I ended up being a bear, which should be nice enough. There are lots of things that are not bears. There might even be things that do not get to be things(?).

I hope the kind of bear I was made to be is the best and most necessary kind of bear I could have been. Hopefully whoever (if anyone or anything (maybe it was me but I forgot? (maybe it was a strange council of bears?))) made those decisions made the best ones possible.

I am a bear.

If you would like to try being a bear, why not read some of the bear adventures available on this very site? 

For any questions or comments directed at Bear, feel free to write to him using this email: justasinglebear@gmail.com

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