There’s a bear in there

We travelled along the Blue Ridge Parkway today, reputedly the most beautiful drive in America. It was indeed wonderful – great scenery, a good road, and a relaxed speed limit of 80kph. We stopped for a picnic lunch along the way, only to find a sign on the picnic bench warning of frequent bear activity in the area. I was reminded of the stress reaction response I taught in psychology. The textbook example always related to what happens if you see a bear. In that previously unlikely event for me, I happily accepted that the flight or fight response would be triggered. I now realise that I could not run fast enough to outrun a bear, nor do I have the strength to fight a bear! I was hoping that if I did actually see a bear, there would be another response available to me! So much for textbook learning!!