When All Bears Were White

All of them acted the same, talked the same way, and were friends with all the other bears, except one

Of all the white bears, there was only one black bear. 

Black Bear always wished to fit in with the others, but he knew he couldn’t change that. 

Black Bear took refuge in a cave on the side of the Color mountain. 

Color mountain was believed to be the home of the Color spirit. 

The Color spirit changed the color of the leaves in the fall and made the flowers bloom in the spring.

 The kind Color spirit accepted all of her creations as they were, no matter what color they were.

She thought everything in the world was beautiful and was happy to make it that way.

Black Bear climbed to the very top of the Color mountain to try and find Color spirit. 

Black Bear waited days, and soon the days turned into weeks and then months

Not one day did Black Bear sleep

On the first day of spring, a bright glowing light shone in the horizon. 

He watched as the bright orb came closer and closer until suddenly it was standing before him. 

The spirit’s glow slowly faded and revealed a beautiful young girl with oil-colored hair.  

Black Bear spoke, “As you can see, I am not the same color as the other bears.

I am black and they are white.

I never fit in with the others and was tormented for years.

I was hoping you could be of assistance to perhaps... teach them a lesson?” 

Black Bear’s eyes drifted so that he looked directly into the young spirit’s eyes. 

Her eyes were not one but many colors, he saw colors that he has never seen before. 

“I see. I only wish that my creations respect each other for their differences. 

Being different isn’t so bad, in fact, I think it’s the best quality of every creature I have ever made.

It’s really a gift that you should cherish. 

Most creatures don’t appreciate their differences though, so it hurts me... 

It seems as if they don’t like my gift. 

Perhaps I can take away their gift?” 

Black Bear thought about this offer, but he didn’t want to hurt them or take away their lives. 

He wasn’t that kind of bear. 

Then he thought of it, “Could you possibly change their color?” 

The Color Spirit nodded, “As you wish,” and with that, she bounded down the mountainside to where the white bears resided.

She turned to all of them and said, “You have been given a great gift, and you have not the thought to even use it. For this, you shall be punished.”

Then, with a raise of her hand, she turned some bears black and some others brown, but left only a few white ones. 

Black Bear was turned white, and when he questioned this action, she simply said, “You are still different than all the rest.” 

Black Bear has never been happier to be different, and this time he wasn’t the only one.