Storytelling Week 7: It's All Fun and Games..

"Have fun kids, remember not to go North of the pond!" said Peggy rabbit. 

"We won't!" replied all six young bunnies. 

Patrick, Paul, Parker, Pam and Payton set off for a fun Friday adventure. The bunnies were used to their over-protective parents not letting them take off too far from their little nook. Every Friday, all the bunnies were allowed to go hang out with their friends and have some fun after dinner. This week, they were planning on meeting up with the local family of turtles for a game of hide-and-seek. 

They all agreed playing hide-and-seek wouldn't be any fun unless they played near the pond where there was plenty of shrubs, plants, and stones to hide behind. They set the rules for the game:

1. No going North of the pond 

2. Whoever finds the one hiding gets to hide next

3. No climbing or hiding in places the turtles weren't capable of getting to

4. No opening your eyes while the one hiding gets to their spot

5. Maximum of 5 minutes allowed to find hiding spot 

In the first round, they decided it was only fair that the oldest one in the group got to hide first. Paul set off into the bushes as everyone else counted down the seconds until they could search for him. They looked in all the bushes, under the logs, in even in the garden of tulips. Eventually, they found him wedged between some fallen tree branches. 

That made it Tony, one of the turtles turn to hide. He walked toward the nearest group of stones and decided to take advantage of being a turtle. He wedged his head, arms and legs into his shell and sat patiently while he waited for them to spot him within the group of stones. The 2 girl bunnies were the first of have the same though process as him, it didn't take them long to notice with rock didn't belong. 

Since Payton was the first to spot him, it was her turn to hide. She took off running to save time finding the ultimate hiding spot. She circled the pond and didn't see anywhere that looked like a good enough place to hide. Just a few strides North of the pond, she saw a hollowed out tree that would be perfect! She knew she wasn't supposed to be on that side, but since it was still pretty close by she figured it would be ok. She settling into the tree, peering out periodically to see if she could see her friends coming her way. She stayed very quiet, not wanting to reveal herself. She stayed still in her spot for what seemed like eternity while she waiting to be found. She heard some rustling nearby and was getting hopeful she would be found soon, since sitting in the tree wasn't exactly as exciting as she thought it would be. Suddenly, she sees the nose of an animal peek into the tree. She jumps with fear and is snatched away by a fox! She felt the wind flowing through her hair and the fox teeth burrowing into the fur on her neck as he carried her farther and farther away.. 

The Family of Rabbits 

(Photo by A.B. Frost)

Bibliography: Brer Rabbit by Joel Chandler Harris

Author's Note: Brer Rabbit had a lot of different animals as the characters, but I knew I wanted to write my story about rabbits. They are an animal that don't associate a lot with humans, so I thought giving them human characteristics would make a unique story. The family of rabbits consists of the two parents, 4 boys rabbits and 2 girl rabbits as the children. When setting off for an afternoon of freedom, one bunny decides to stretch the rules and ends up in a conflict. I decided to end my story on a cliffhanger, so readers could decide how the story ends. I believe this children's book style story teaches a lesson and it is up to you to decide just how much trouble the bunny ends up in.