The Bear

by Andrew Krivak

Not all animals had the range of voice that could be heard, he said, but all living things spoke, and perhaps the real question was how she could understand him.

Those were the trees, replied the bear, companions to us all who forget nothing that happens in the forest beneath them and whose memories span seasons beyond count. For each one carries the memory inside of every living thing that has ever touched it or passed beneath the shade of its limbs and leaves, trunk and branches. Every living thing that has ever walked the earth. The bear looked into the fire then and said, The wood you burn to cook your food and keep you warm? The smoke that rises was once a memory. The ashes all that is left of the story it belonged to. Why else would you be carrying the ashes of your father? The two were quiet then for a long time, until the girl put her hand on the pack she always had next to her and said, So they will remember us, won’t they? For as long as they stand in the forest. Of that I am certain.