Bear Star Search

Based on a true story, my experience.

Here is Rose. She is on a camping trip with her four friends.  The five girls are in Yellowstone Park. It is night time, stars fill the sky, crickets chirp, the wolves howl while they huddle in their tent. The air is very thin which makes trekking with a heavy back pack hard, so this is their time to rest. But, here is the clearest sky Rose has ever seen. In New York- where she lives, there is a lot of light pollution. So, while on this camping trip Rose is taking the opportunity to look at the constellations. Sitting by the campfire, Rose and her friends have an idea: take a dip in the Snake River. It definitely wasn't the smartest idea but Rose wanted to go at night so that she could see the stars… one more time. So the young campers set off with there flashlights in hand. The only sounds were the noises of the sleeping forest, the nocturnal creatures, and their foot steps. But what the kids didn't see was a shadowy figure behind them. The girls continued down to the river. The shadowy figure was curiously nearing them. They reached the river and all hopped in with a splash. "What was that?" Rose said. They glanced around. The shadowy figure emerged… A bear! It was foraging on berries and had likely noticed the girls in the water. Rose wanted to run but there would be no point in doing so because you would get short of breath. But, the kids remembered that one way to stand up to a bear: was to make yourself look taller and less vulnerable. So what they did being young and athletic with a background of gymnastics… they quickly and quietly formed a human pyramid. Three at the bottom, two in the middle and Rose on top. They did it on higher ground and didn't look the bear in the eye. The terrifying bear stared at the pyramid and appeared perplexed. And then it turned around without any threats, and slowly vanished into the bushes, never to be seen again. The children remained in the pyramid for another minute. Then strength and function returned. They gingerly dismantled themselves. And silently crept back to their tent under the full moon. And they wondered if anybody would ever believe that story? Never take a selfie with a bear.