June 2024: Aurora Bear – Val Shooter
Aurora Bear
Aurora Bear lived in a white land at the top of the world.
The ground and the sea were white, and so was Aurora Bear - except for small, black eyes… strong, black claws… a black nose and a long, black tongue.
Aurora Bear was born in a snowy den near the sea. When old enough, he started learning to swim and hunt, but he loved milk time best because he could snuggle into his mother’s thick, warm fur.
Long, sunny days shortened and the air cooled.
“Soon daylight will be gone, so we must return to our den,” his mother said.
Days became night and the world froze but Aurora Bear and his mother slept in their snow cave.
One night Aurora Bear woke to see colours flickering through the cave. The blue of the sea and the red of seal meat he knew, but what were the other colours? His movements woke his mother.
“It’s only the Northern Lights playing in the sky,” she yawned. “Go back to sleep, Aurora Bear.”
But Aurora Bear couldn’t sleep, so when his mother started snoring, he sneaked out of the cave…
Streaks of white flared bright green – then dissolved into darkness – before the whole sky blazed with swirls of red and yellow. Green curtains shimmered and danced on high.
When a moonlight pathway appeared across the ocean, Aurora Bear stole closer to the water’s edge to see where it led.
He surprised some geese. How they flapped their wings and made the curtains ripple as they flew away! *Denmark
He stepped onto the path and left icy footprints in the water. **
He frightened a shoal of herrings. As they darted away their shiny scales flashed blue and purple into the sky. *Sweden
A fox ran across a mountain. Whenever its fur touched the land, red sparks shot into the air. When its tail flicked up snow, the sparks faded to white. *Finland
As Aurora Bear reached the place where the sea and sky meet, he kept on walking… and soon he was up in the sky amongst the lights. How beautiful it was!
Hoof beats sounded and Viking warriors on horseback thundered past him, far up into the heavens. The night flamed orangey-gold with their armour. *Norway
Aurora Bear looked down at his footprint path and saw his mother standing on the shore.
“Come home, Aurora Bear!” she called.
He thought of warm milk and their cosy den, so he raced away from the warriors… the fox on the mountain… the herrings and the geese…. and back along his footprint path… until he reached his mother.
After his milk, Aurora Bear cuddled into her fur and was soon fast asleep.
If you cannot get to the white land at the top of the world to see Aurora Bear and his mother, then look into the Northern sky.
If they followed Aurora Bear’s footprint path, they could be up there together, twinkling in the darkness, and watching the Northern Lights. ***
Val Shooter
Right Left Write’s June prompt was Writing For Children.
Find out more about Right Left Write at www.queenslandwriters.org.au/rightleftwrite.
The competition’s July prompt is Magical Realism – entries close 31 July 2024.
Illustration notes: Legends* about the Northern Lights from Denmark, Sweden, Finland and Norway; an ice formation called pancake ice**; and the Bear Constellations of Ursa Major and Ursa Minor*** These are marked with asterisks and countries of origin where necessary.