This went on for weeks. Maggie would prepare a basket of food, smother it in her famous maple syrup and keep the bear company while it ate. The bear loved Maggie's maple syrup! It could eat it on anything. Maggie put it on toast, biscuits, bagels and buns, and the bear would wolf them down. She'd put it in coffee, iced tea and whiskey and the bear would lap it dry. She'd dunk cookies, donuts, even pizza crust in the syrup and the bear would enjoy them with what looked to be a smile. Maggie relished her time with the bear. It reminded her of Bob. She could pet it without needing wings on her boots and the bear didn't seem to mind the attention. On yet another Tuesday, Maggie was preparing a food basket for the bear when she reached into the cupboard to find all of the syrup jars were empty. She had used up her entire reserve. Maggie's Famous Maple Syrup was no more. Instantly, she feared if Bob ... I mean, the bear would still come to visit her. She left the basket of dry food out on the porch and waited inside to avoid embarrassment. All morning passed and the bear stayed leaned up against Big Sapper. A few more hours went by, still no movement. Finally, Maggie had had enough. She was angry with the bear for not wanting her food without syrup on it when she had been feeding it for weeks. It was time to give the bear a piece of her mind. Maggie stepped out on the back porch, pointed her finger at the bear and before she could utter a word, the bear rocked off its hind legs and came trotting. It had been waiting for Maggie to come outside. Head first into the basket as it had done for weeks. The animal ate with the same vigor as if the food had been drenched in Maggie's Famous Maple Syrup. Maggie couldn't help but laugh. In that moment she accepted the bear was not a reincarnation of her late husband (no matter how much she wanted it to be) and that the bear ... I mean Bob, didn't put Maggie's Famous Maple Syrup on everything he ate because he loved maple syrup. He did it because he loved Maggie and wanted everyone to know.
THE END