KANOOK’S DIFFICULT DAY

Some lessons—like patience—have to be learned the hard way

Roooar!” Mother bear’s breath hung in the Arctic air, thick enough to hide her face for a moment. She was really angry this time.

“I told you not to tell her,” whispered little Nanoose, too scared to look up. “But I’m so hungry,” complained Kanook, “and there are so many good smells that come from there!”

“You are NEVER to go anywhere near the lights! The humans do not want us there and they will hurt you!” Mother bear was loud enough that her words echoed slightly. It felt like it had been forever since they had a nice, big dinner of anything. The small white foxes had barely enough meat on their bones to satisfy baby brother Nanoose. But across the ice, where the lights sparkled like jewels in the night, came the most delicious smells like nothing Kanook had ever smelled before. Mother bear walked near the open water along the frozen ice, sniffing expectantly. She told her white cubs only a few days ago that the seals were late, but they would be showing up any day now. Then they would feast! It was hard to wait, especially when something so tasty was only as far away as the lights. For dinner that night, Kanook’s family had fish, but it was small and only seemed to tease the hungry family.

“Finding this fish is a good sign,” announced Mother bear. “This means that the seals cannot be far behind because they follow the fish, too.”

Kanook was very pleased to hear this and his tummy growled with approval. Kanook could hardly remember what seal tasted like. He had eaten it once before, but he was very young at the time. But Mother’s food always tasted good, especially when there was a lot of it!

That night, his mother’s warmth surrounded him like a thick blanket and Kanook looked up to the sky to see if the big star was still there. He noticed it a few days ago because it was brighter than the other stars. It made Kanook feel so safe that he quickly drifted off to sleep.

The next day, while Mother bear was hunting for the family breakfast, Kanook and Nanoose raced each other across the ice. Nanoose suddenly stopped, his nose sniffing the air excitedly. There was a heavy, sweet aroma that made Kanook’s mouth water instantly.

“Do you smell that?” Nanoose whispered with a

WENDY FREDETTE

Born in Winnipeg, Wendy grew up in British Columbia and now resides in the beautiful Shuswap with her partner Shane and their two “furry babies.” She works two jobs, an activity worker for interior health and a cashier for a gaming centre. Wendy enjoys camping, fishing, swimming and gardening. Wendy says she entered this story in our Fiction Writing contest for fun, so having it published is very exciting! She wanted to go with a Canadian theme and it just evolved into a children’s story.

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