The orange kitten was hungry. The grizzly bear was lonely. The man was apprehensive.
The cat weighed no more than ten ounces when he first slid under the fence into the bear’s pen. The man was almost in a panic thinking the hungry grizzly would kill him with one swat and eat him for dinner—carnivorous bears make much larger animals a part of their diet.
The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them.
ISAIAH 11:6 KJV
The grizzly, whose name was Griz, had come to the Oregon wildlife center in 1990 when he was just a cub. Hit by a train while foraging on railroad tracks in Montana, he suffered severe head injuries and was deemed unfit to return to the wild.
The kitten was one of four kittens abandoned at the center early in the summer. Volunteers were able to find homes for the rest of the litter, but Cat, as he was now called, somehow eluded them.
Then one day in July, Cat turned up in Griz’s pen. Afraid to do anything that might alarm Griz, the man just watched, expecting the worst. As the 650-pound grizzly was eating his midday meal, something extraordinary happened. The bear very gently picked out a chicken wing with his forepaw and dropped it near Cat.
From that moment on, Griz and Cat became something of a slapstick animal act. Cat would lay in ambush, then leap out and swat Griz on his nose. Griz would carry Cat in his mouth. Cat would ride on Griz’s back, and sometimes Griz would lick Cat.
Their friendly relationship defies both the patterns of nature as well as their own troubled life histories. Griz never took advantage of Cat’s weaknesses, and each animal has accommodated the other’s needs.34
What a lesson Griz and Cat offer! We can help each other break free from the patterns of our past that keep us from loving each other. As we pray for and care for others with the love of Jesus Christ, we obtain healing by the grace of God, both for them and ourselves!
Never cease loving a person, and never give up hope for him; for even the Prodigal Son who had fallen most low could still be saved.
The bitterest enemy and also
he who was your friend could
again be your friend; love that
has grown cold can kindle again.
SØREN AABYE KIERKEGAARD