"A thing of beauty is a joy forever" - John Keats

	The Bear's Lair five toes meant one thing. he was near. I followed his tracks. passed a dead buck probably taken down days before by a bullet. I secured my handgun and my rifle. I must get the jump on him. I tip-toed creekside. then, suddenly, on the other bank, I heard an air-shaking growl. he was as big as mountain sky. he had violence in his heart and me in his eyes. his jaw opened wide, his body full of wanton hunger. I grimaced.  he'd be a trophy, his head standing proudly nailed to the wall, that is, if I could take him. he rose on his hind legs. I felt dread.  swallowed twice. cocked my gun. but he was fast. me clumsy. he crossed back. his big teeth like bronze emblems. I hung like a toy. I thought this is it. my last act. the headlines will read eaten by a bear. but no, the ordeal continued. he dragged me through the gurgling stream into bushes and across beds of rocks. bruised me bad. when we reached the beast's den, I feared I'd be dinner. I saw mama bear and her growing cubs. they motioned back and forth with their paws. I understood. they said I'd make a great rug.		Wahkeena Falls (Beautiful Woman in Yakima Native Language) bright, white and sassy, she hops rocks, dives beneath downed trees. I watch her thrash to the ground. catch her furious spray, then lounge in her gypsy soft air as she rolls out to sea in her own patent way. she endures each day with integrity. her dance, speech, and ancient aura draw me in with sweet, protective kisses. I walk in her wilds. tossing around in her centuries old rocks. she is never out of sight. she has a dancing stone bowl, even an underworld. I can smell her.  she helps build my ship. speaks like a companion. my wandering mind rests in her play, in her angelic noise. in her authentic scent. upon leaving, I always thank her. in winter her lone body rips out a rhapsodic roar. spurious wind gusts bend her legs, wring her side to side. she hisses and howls yet her droplets touch your face like soft winter kisses. I come each week with the satisfaction of knowing she is never somewhere else.