The Bear Who Didn't Deliver His Valentines

by John A. B. McLeish

There was once a bear whose name was Alexander Cadwallader Theodore Bear, but every one got so tired of saying that long name that they just called him Sunny Bear for short. He was called Sunny because he was a very fat jolly bear, and he made people feel good just to have him around. Also he was a big kind bear who never hurt any one in the Forest, but in the long summers would eat honey and berries and grubs, and sleep in the sun.

Now Theodore (or Sunny) Bear, whichever you want to call him liked Christmas and Halloween and Easter and St. Patrick's Day and all the holidays on the calendar, but the day he liked best was St. Valentine's Day. You might wonder how Theodore could like that day best when it was still winter in the Forest and the bears were all supposed to be asleep. But it happened in this Forest that every year about St. Valentine's Day, the sun came out so warm and bright that the snow melted, the grass showed itself again, the sky was blue, and some of the animals forgot that there was still part of winter left.

Squeaker the Squirrel scampered around on the tree boughs drying in the sun; Richard Robin flew in for a time thinking maybe it was spring; and the Happy Hedgehog and William the Woodchuck poked out their heads in the sunshine. Since it was St. Valentine's Day the Forest animals would hold a big party in the middle of the afternoon where they would give Valentines to one another, and have games and food and fun.

But what made the day so much fun for Theodore was the fact that every St. Valentine's Day he delivered a big red valentine made of a big maple leaf from a red maple, which he had saved in his log through the winter, with some red berries and a nice warm piece of brown bark shaped like a heart ... all held together with some wiry roots from a wandering bramble --- anyway, though this may sound like a funny valentine to you, Theodore Bear worked hard to put it together and when he made three like this, he set out to give them to the people he had made them for.

Now the people were old Antlers, a tired old deer who lived in the North part of the Forest; Chee-Oh, a lame little squirrel who lived in the West part of the Forest; and Ho-Tan,a bear that nobody liked who lived in the East part of the forest. Theodore knew that those three animals would miss the party, because Antlers was too old to get there, Chee-Oh couldn't go because his lameness wouldn't let him, and Ho-Tan wouldn't be invited, because nobody liked Ho-Tan. Theodore didn't really like Ho-Tan an awful lot, either, because Ho-Tan often said mean things to people and other bears, but he was sorry for Ho-Tan and Chee-Oh and Antlers, and that was why he set out to take them his home-made Valentines.

But each of them lived in a different part of the Forest, and that meant that Theodore "Sunny" Bear would have to do a lot of weary walking before he delivered his three valentines and then went on to the Party in the South end of the Forest. Still, Theodore didn't mind; he went whistling along because it made him happy to think he was going to give a valentine to Antlers and Chee-Oh and Ho-Tan, who otherwise would spend St. Valentine's Day alone.

But as he was on his way to visit Antlers and give him his valentine, what should he spy but a wounded bird which some bad boy had shot over in the Bright Meadow, flutter and fall into the Shining River that runs swiftly through the Forest on its way to the Thundering Falls. "Help, help!" cheeped the bird, and when Theodore saw that the bird would be swept away and over the falls, he plunged in without a second's thought into the swift water near the bank and scooped the bird right out of the water and on to the shore where it could lie resting and drying in the St. Valentine's Day sun.

"Are you all right?" Sunny Bear asked in his deep, kind voice. The little bird said "O yes, yes. My bird people will come for me. Thank you very much." Then Sunny Bear raised his blue and yellow cap and said good-bye politely, but as he did so, a terrible thought struck him.

Yes, he had only two valentines left in his coat pocket ... one of them must have fallen out when he dashed into the Shining River to save the bird. Yes, there it went, off down the swift river, going quickly out of sight around the bend. Theodore felt very sorry. But he said to himself, "Oh, well, maybe I will have time later to make another valentine for old Mr. Antlers. But I must be careful now of the valentine for Chee-Oh." Because you see each valentine had the name of the animal on it, and Sunny Bear had to deliver the right valentine to the right person.

It was a weary trip back from the North to the West part of the Forest, but Theodore whistled as he went along, thinking how happy Chee-Oh would be to get the valentine and planning to make a new one for Antlers if he had time enough.

But just as he was getting close to Chee-Oh's home, what should happen but that Theodore spied a human boy caught in a tree near the trail, and calling for help. Theodore saw at once that the boy was too small to be climbing trees and that he had got too far and was afraid to come down, and so Theodore padded over to the tree, and climbed up, and freed the boy by squeezing the big apart where they had swung together, and dropped the boy down safely on a big bed of moss. But the boy did not even say, "Thank you," he was so frightened of the tree and the bear and everything, and off he ran like a flash down the forest paths back to his farm home. At this Theodore sighed a bit. "He might have said 'Thank you'," said Theodore straightening his orange and blue cap. Then he looked at his two valentines to see if they were safe, and just at that moment, whe-e-e-e- the sharp spring wind came whistling along in the sunshine and spun Chee-Oh's valentine out of Theodore's paw, and away it went, off through the trees, so that Theodore could never find it again among all the bushes and moss and dead leaves.

Now Theodore felt very badly indeed. He didn't cry because he was too big a bear, but he had a very small whistle as he turned toward the East part of the Forest with the valentine for Ho-Tan.

"At least Ho-Tan will be happy," thought Theodore. "He's really not such a bad sort, even if he does say mean things sometimes. Maybe he has forgotten how to be nice and make friends. Maybe my valentine will help him to be nice again." And with this thought, Theodore felt much better, and off he went toward the East part of the Forest.

But as he was coming down the grassy trail that lead to Ho-Tan's hollow, he heard a little voice crying to one side of the trail. "Where are you, little voice?" asked Theodore; and when the voice called again, Theodore saw that it was a tiny bunny that had been wounded by Clawbeak, the Black Hawk, but had escaped and crawled away. "Gosh," said Theodore in his deep, kind voice "I am sorry to see you so badly hurt. What can I do for you, little rabbit?"

"Get me some healing bark," squeaked the rabbit, "so that this wound will heal and my life will be saved."

So Theodore went over to a cedar tree and scraped off some bark, but the rabbit said, "No, no, that's the wrong kind;" and then Theodore scraped off a piece of pine bark, but the little bunny said faintly "Alas, no, that is not healing bark. Get me birch bark, silver birch bark." But though Theodore looked everywhere about, there was not a silver birch tree to be seen.

"I am so sorry, little bunny," said Theodore, "I cannot find a piece of silver birch bark to heal your wound."

"There, in your hand," squeaked the little rabbit, "right there in your hand, Mr. Bear." And sure enough, Theodore had had the right kind of bark in his hand all along: it was the heart-shaped bark that he was going to give to Ho-Tan as a valentine, after he had wrapped a red maple leaf about it. Theodore paused. It was his last valentine, and he was very very tired with much walking. But all the time the little rabbit was getting worse, and he would die unless his wound was healed.

Theodore stooped, and taking the wire-roots of the bramble bushes, he bound the valentine close to the wound of the little bunny. Then he waited for quite a time in the sun, until the sun began to cool a bit, and the day was passing swiftly. Then Theodore saw the bunny get stronger and stronger, and finally hop away into the Forest carrying the healing valentine next to his wound. Theodore was glad that the bunny's life had been saved. Yet now all his valentines were gone. He had not delivered even one valentine. And then, too, it was getting late. The sunshine was going away, and Theodore was a long way from the South part of the Forest where the party was.

Sadly he turned back on the trail. At first he thought he would just go home, since he would be very late for the party, and would have no valentines to give. But then he thought maybe he could do something to help before the party broke up, so though his legs were very tired and his hands were empty, he walked for a long way through the Forest until, just at dusk, he reached the Forest Circle where the Valentine Party was being held.

When he walked into the circle he could hardly believe his eyes. All the animals were there and they were crowding around him and cheering his name.

But not only that: Antlers was there, and Chee-Oh, the lame squirrel, and even Ho-Tan the rude bear, all smiling and welcoming him. The little rabbit was there too, with the healing valentine; and the bird with the wounded wing. And right in the middle of the circle what should Theodore see but a huge valentine heart, made of sugar and honey, with the word "Sunny" written in red berries of the kind that Theodore loved. "I don't understand," said Theodore, stopping and resting his aching legs. "I don't understand why you do this for me," he said in his deep, kind voice.

"Don't you know?" chirped the little bird that had been saved by Theodore from the Shining River. "When my bird family saw that you remembered Antlers and Chee-Oh and Ho-Tan when every one else forgot them, they told all the animals of the Forest, and so we brought them to our party. As for the big heart made of maple candy ... that's for you, Theodore." And all the animals at the party clapped their paws, and shouted "It's all for you, Theodore."

"Well, gosh," said Theodore. "Thanks, everybody. But everyone must help me eat it." So he took a big piece of sugar and gave it first to Ho-Tan, who was forgetting how to be mean, and then all the animals had a wonderful St. Valentine's Party.

So that night, Theodore went back to his comfortable log, and slept and slept until the new snow went away, and the birds sang their spring songs.