Reincarnated Expectations

When I am reincarnated, I hope I will be a bear. One who is fierce, powerful, sure. Or perhaps an owl. One who is intelligent, mysterious, patient. Or maybe even a gorilla. One who is compassionate, proud, strong. I hope to be reincarnated as something free from the cruelty of the world but not disconnected from its beauty. In truth, when I am reincarnated, I hope to be all of the things I am not, while still being everything that I am. I want to live this life with good intentions that I may someday come across in my next life. A life that leaves something behind of who I was that can inspire who I become, even if I never realize it was me. In my next life, I hope to learn of the things I have done in this life in the hope that the cycle of the wrong I have done is discontinued and the good is built upon. I will learn more, see more, never repeat my mistakes, be jovial, build by mental and physical strength, and live my life as quietly as I do in this life. But that doesn't answer the question of what I will be reincarnated as, does it? Those are just my hopes. Being reincarnated as an animal is a perk of existence, but lacks the challenge that my soul craves. It is a primal existance rather than one of conscious direction. Although I may eat my own words and actually be reincarnated as an animal, I know more than anything that if I have a legacy to continue, if my soul knows it can do more and will thrive, I will be reincarnated as the one thing no one hopes for: A person.