Walking jauntily towards Longyearbyen town center in Svalbard
We finally encountered the magnificent beast for whom we’d been looking so hard
He was huge, and ferocious, teeth bared as if he would rip us apart with just his jaws
And if anything was still left, he would finish it off with those deadly, sharp claws
We bowed before him, as was the custom, and begged him for a picture
At first he demurred, but then relented, such was his mercurial but kind nature
So he struck a pose that was suitably regal, he made a truly impressive sight
Armour on, claws bared, as if he was lusting for a terribly awesome fight
If I had even an iota of sense in me, I would have shown him adequate respect and maintained my good first impression
But the imp in me chose just that moment to wake up, and goaded me into foolishly copying his posture and expression
As soon as the picture got taken, he turned around and discovered that I was aping him
So he let out a mighty roar of anger, and pounced at me with full vigour and vim
I ran as fast as my legs would carry me, which, to be honest, is just above a slow amble
Very soon, he would catch me, and proceed to massacre me without too much of a preamble
But then it was like the Gods had decided to give me a second chance
For by the side of the road, I saw my escape route even through a hurried glance
And when the polar bear came running to catch the puny human and make him atone
He saw another polar bear and asked him where the human had gone
I saw him jump on to a passing boat and leave, came the reply, leaving the insulted polar bear wringing his hands in despair
And this, dear readers, is how yours truly managed to escape the wrath of a fiercely frightful polar bear
jagahdilmein 