I am jealous of black bears.

I am jealous of black bears. A mother black bear gives birth in her den, in the middle of her winter slumber. She wakes up long enough to cut the umbilical cord and clean off the near-hairless cubs (usually one or two), and then she goes back to sleep! One book I read actually says, “…it’s not known how aware she is of the birth itself.” God must be very fond of bears if they can give birth and not even be aware of it. I imagine the bear rolling over and thinking, “Oh, look. The babies were born.” The cubs stay warm in her fur, suckle, and grow. Two months later she wakes up and leaves the den, and by this time, the cubs are big enough to follow along behind her, watching and learning from her. If everything in nature evolved for a purpose, what’s the reason for bears having such a smooth birthing process and ours being 6-24+ hours of pain?

84 days until baby.