Reading Diary A: Inuit Stories

The Woman Who Had a Bear as a Foster Son

Brown bears. Source.


A woman lived on the shore by the ocean. The neighbors that lived above her would give her meat and blubber from their hunts.
Once on a hunt, a bear was killed. This bear had a bear cub. The man who killed the bear offered the woman the cub which she took quickly. The poor bear was frozen and she took the time to thaw him out by the fire. She fed him blubber, butter to drink, and he would sleep next to her. The woman would speak to the bear like a human. The bear could understand her, and she could understand the things the bear would want. People would continue to bring her food. The children loved to play with the bear. The foster mother would remind the bear to keep his claws hidden when playing with the children. The bear would keep it claws hidden but he was too rough with the children and would break their toys. He grew so strong that he was no longer able to play with the kids but would play with the adults. But soon, he was too strong to play with the adults. They thought it would be better to go hunting and have the bear accompany them to get seals. While out on a hunting trip the bear was nearly killed the bear. The foster mother made the bear a collar to identify to others that he is no wild animal. The bear now was strong, he never missed a hunt and was tough. People knew who he was.

A group called the Angmagssalik, lived far from the bear. They heard about the bear who was large and could not be caught. They made it their goal to catch the bear. The people were warned not to hurt the bear. The foster mother always would teach the bear to be well behaved. She requested to the bear to treat new people like their family.

One day the bear went on a hunt as usual but did not return at his normal time. The bear made his foster mother go outside to see that he had drug home a dead man. The man as trying to kill the bear and the bear defended himself. The mother wept as she told the bear that he had to go away now. The bear refused to leave until the mother said it was time to go find others likes him. Before he left, the mother soaked her hands in oil and soot then rubbed the bears sides.

It is said today that when the bears come out, you can always find one brown bear with a black spot on its side.