She WAS a bunny of a different fabric, and color, with very different ways. But, i did not know then that she had a strong connection to the bonnebunnys. the couple that was to travel to kentucky, to live with my farmgirl friend, jonni and her songwriter husband jus.
even though we had already had their going away party, the bunny couple had refused to start their journey to kentucky.
the delays did not start until the chenille bunny arrived.
i found her to be a pleasant enough bunny,she was young and had some clever ideas of her own, she was not my bunny so i found her interesting and intriguing and sometimes charming. increasingly, i could tell that the couple destined to leave for kentucky where quite alarmed by chenilles demeanor, and in turn it seemed to alarm the other bunnies here, too, because the bunny couple were older and much loved for their wisdom and downhome bunny ways.
i finally had to approach the couple and ask them if they had changed their minds about the trip to kentucky. no, they still longed to make a home with jonni and her husband, as they had taken to reading post about their new home on the maryjanefarmgirl.com site.
they knew that jonni, was a supreme gardener and pie maker, and her husband,jus could fill the air with beautiful music….and well these little bunns were quite the paw thumpers as they liked to tell me.(that is toe tappin for we humans they explained.) they also let me know that miss jonni was a great toe tapper herself (aka ,dancer.)so they were very excited to go to kentucky, because miss jonni also had some wonderful farmgirl friends, like miss wilma, and the girls, and that they had gatherins that were known far and wide. ..and i myself knew of miss jonni’s sweet nature and how SHE could be such a comfort to us gals of a different age group and make us feel so young at heart. so, iasked “what IS the delay?”
and in hushed tones,they told me…”it is the chenille one, we are afraid to leave her.”
“why?” i asked.
they replied,” she was once ours.”
i told them, “i dont understand.”
and so began their tale of the chenille bunny.
she was the oldest daughtere in a rather large group of bunnies. she was a pretty and bright bunny but was born with the chenille fabric,and since she was the oldest of the female children she was destined to learn the wisdom and pass it on, a very big job in the world of bunnies. 
she had shown all the traits of a carrier of the wisdom, and learned well….and yet, she had some ways that were not farmiliar to the couple. it wasnt just in the cut of her cloth, she was chenille, it was true, and to the bunnies of wool, while odd it was not unheard of.
there was also the matter of her gatherings. she didnt just gather and recycle utilitarian objects as was the way of the bunnies, but she actually gathered cast off objects and used them as…as …objects of adornment.
ah yes, i too had noticed the little safety pin over her left eye, and while at first it put me off, i grew used to seeing it above her flashing teal green eyes.
“and then there is her name”, they continued,” we named her lilac, a perfectly respectable name, but all her friends call her….teal.”
“oh, oh, oh,…..”the mom piped in,” and her paw thumping,(aka,dancing). it is not the traditional dance.it seems to start in her chest, above her heart and vibrate through her body. she doesnt just dance with her paws, but with her whole being……and well, it is an unknown form to us. “
they wondered where will her journey lead her? we are so afraid to leave her, what will she do if she is not the one passes on the wisdom? what will her journey be? the couple seemed very concerned over the plight of teal the chenille lilac bunny.
they spoke so rapidly, i was unable to get a word in.
but, i had pondered these question too. i had known the quandry of watching my grown children as they went about the task of finding their own journey.
” what have you done?” i asked them.
” well we have spoken with her REPEATEDLY about the wisdom, hoping she would take it all in, and then we would sometimes, punish her for her chenille ways.”they got very quiet when they reported this to me.
“yes, that is hard trail to travel down, even for human parents,” i shared.
“and how would she respond?” i asked.
when she was a young bunny, she would try hard to listen to our ways, but she had alot of ear problems which can be very hard on bunnys you know….
“oh, yes,” the bunnies responded” when your ears dont feel good , you dont feel good.” there were alot of head nodding to this bit of information.
and then, she left the hutch, before her time, we felt, and started a journey on her own….
OOOOOoooooohhhhh! was the response from the bunnies.
……we did not see her for many seasons, until she arrived here.
….and what has she explained of the past events?
silence, nothing, nada……..
what does she say about where, and why and what?
“well,’ they responded slowly, “we have tried to talk to her about what she needs to do and the wisdom that we have tried to teach her and she just….listens, i think,but, there is that twitching with her ears that she has started doing again and, well, we dont know if she will hear us.”
again, their voices were so quick, i couldnt find a spot to “jump” in.
finally….
“so you dont know the where ,and why, and what,..of the journey that she has been on since she left?’ i asked the troubled couple.
“well, no.” they turned quickly and started walking back to their hutch and i noticed as they were leaving a very mild twitch, on his left ear, and the right ear for her.
many days passed before i saw hide or hare of teal, the mama and the daddy bunny. i began to wonder if they had all decided to just leave rather than face the other bunnies or even me. i began fretting a little myself, and developed a little twitch over my right eye that comes sometimes when i live in my head , just goes along with worry i usually thought. i had not had this particular twitch in several years, i think when my youngest daughter….oh, well, anyway….
i was outside tending the goats one morning, just a little treat before i got busy with my work, when the bunnies, teal, mama and daddy came up the lane to talk with me.
the goats started baaing so loud at the intrusion, i could hardly hear a word they said.
“lets go sit and have a little break,”i told them.
i waited patiently and to my surprise, teal began the conversation.
“i wanted to thank you for the care you have given mama and daddy as they head out on this journey,” she started , “and i wanted to thank you for helping them accept mine.”
i knew the surprised look on my face was not lost on teal as her face gazed into mine with clear teal green eyes.
you allowed me to have a voice with my beloved parents, something that is unheard of in the bunny world, when your mama is the carrier of wisdom.
oh,, i nodded, not quite understanding.
“you must be very wise indeed in your own hutch, a human wisdom speaker”, the mama bunny explained and wiggled her nose as she pressed it against my hand. “i will always be greatful for your kindness and wisdom.”
she embraced her daughter and she and her beloved hubby headed towards the hutch to gather up their belongings to take on their journey, finally.
“what, why, i….” stammered to teal.
“why you told them that they needed to listen to me, a very wise lesson for them to learn as the parents of a grown bunny..”
…..and with that teal, chenille, the lilac bunny turned and hopped out of my life forever.
and left me with my own memories of a day long ago when my very own grown daughter asked me in a
aha moment, “mom, how can i find my own voice, if the only one i hear is yours?”
wisdom,,,,,sometimes we learn it from our children, if we can just listen.
for my teal, with love and admiration, you are a great woman.
i think it is a little early for christmas, we have yet to have thanksgiving.
and now i have an etsy site.
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