Story Warren

Kindling Imagination for Kingdom Anticipation

Dog the Bear and Bear the Dog

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Dog the Bear Aedan PDog the Bear and Bear the Dog

by S.D. Smith, illustrated by Aedan Peterson

There once was a dog whose full name was “Bear,”
And a bear whose full name was “Dog,”
On one side of the forest, a log fell on Bear,
On the other, Dog fell on a log.

Dog the Bear Aedan PIt might have been confusing, I know, I know,
But neither of them knew the other.
And poor Dog had only a brother, aged seven,
and Bear only had seven brothers.

Dog hibernated, as all bears will do,
And they wisely let sleeping Bear lie,
Bear chewed on bones, but Dog ate four people,
Thus Dog was unbearably wide.

If it seems too painful, to think of ole’ Dog,
Eating four people, then belching,
Know none were nice and all had once eaten,
Bear meat –and got second helpings!

Bear had himself, never eaten a man,
Though one said, “You smell like a skunk!”
He then kicked Bear, but Bear did not eat him,
Only chewed a quite generous chunk.

So, these two had had run-ins with humans,
And humans had run in to them,
But again, they had never, ever once met and,
That’s usually where stories begin.

It might begin with them shaking hands,
And hitting it off from the start,
But neither Bear, nor Dog, even had hands!
And Bear hated “shake” from the heart.

Once a railway man had taught Bear to “shake,”
To “roll over” and “play dead” for groups,
But that day on the train, when commanded, “Obey!”
Bear bit him upon on his caboose.

Dog, likewise, had quite a career,
He had once been a great circus bear.
But he drew the line and abandoned the job,
When they made him wear pink underwear!

Aedan Dog Bear

So Dog was a bear and yes, Bear was a dog,
And Dog, the bear, could be scary,
But Bear the dog, wasn’t nearly as doggy,
As Dog was so splendidly beary.

If they ever met, but didn’t ever get to–
“My name is,” –to the point where you share it.
I think an oddness would dog Bear all his days,
And that Dog couldn’t possibly bear it.

S. D. Smith
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Aedan Peterson
Latest posts by Aedan Peterson (see all)

Comments

  3. Very silly, giggles all around. The closing couplet is especially marvelous. And the artwork, just perfect. I love these Friday bits!

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  8. Until I looked carefully, realized what this site was and who S.D. Is, I thought this story was much older. It reminds me of the poems and stories my Hoosier Gma used to read me.

    And obviously the artist has been working on his craft for years. Love it.

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  9. High five Aedan! You’re a published illustrator! You did an excellent job. Looking forward to seeing more from you on the blog!
    Best,
    Will

    Reply

  10. I love everything about this! Aedan….what a perfect illustration for this piece. I look forward to seeing much more from you.

    Reply

  11. Well done! I loved the line “Only chewed a quite generous chunk.” And the ringmaster in the background of the drawing has great personality contrasting the attitude of the bear perfectly!

    Reply

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