The Tale of the Easter Bunny

©2010 Susan Noyes Anderson

all rights reserved

I know a great story you may not have heard.

It really did happen. For sure. Every word.

It's all about Easter, which seems pretty right.

Cuz Easter is here. Well, almost, but not quite.

One day, Easter Bunny woke up feeling blue.

His hen friends had quit laying eggs. Yep, it’s true!

Not one single egg for three days. No, not one.

Would his Easter bunny-ing ever get done?

That gathering, dyeing, and hiding job's tough

without any eggs. None just isn't enough!

It's not even close to enough; let's get real.

This Easter egg thing is a pretty big deal.

So Bunny took notes till his brain was quite sore.

He thought thoughts that he’d never thought of before.

Had something gone wrong with the hens? Something bad?

Had someone done something to make them feel sad?

Or maybe their stomachs were feeling quite sick.

He had to find out, and it had to be quick!

He hopped to the henhouse and made his way in,

then straightened his bunny ears, stuck out his chin...

And took a deep breath. There were eggs to be laid…

fresh eggs, yolky stuff of which Easter is made.

(His whiskers were twitching; he’d heard some reports

that hens could be mean when they felt out of sorts.)

The oldest one clucked and looked up from her perch.

"We ain’t got no eggs, rabbit! Don’t even search.

You've been a good friend to us over the years,

but we’re plum fed up with them pigs and their sneers.

They look down on us cuz we can’t be ham dinners…

like Easter’s a contest, and they’re the big winners.

What’s wrong with egg salad and sweet, deviled eggs?

These swine think that they’re the best thing on four legs.

Hmph. Next thing you know, they'll be stealing our wings!

They treat us like peasants and call themselves kings.

Soon, they're gonna learn Easter's not about ham.

Most humans would be just as happy with lamb...

But Easter eggs can’t be replaced; it's a shame.

Without eggs from us, Easter won't be the same.

No colorful baskets. No Easter egg hunts.

These porkers will find out they're nothing but grunts."

“But what of the children?” the sad bunny cried.

“They’ll just have to manage. We hens have our pride,”

sniffed the bird. They can make it through one egg-less year.

We’re striking. That’s it! Chicken power is here!!

Chicken power indeed, thought the hare with a frown.

These henhouse hysterics will not keep me down.

I’ll make eggs of shiny-bright plastic to hide,

with Easter-y colors and candy inside!

These hens need to realize (just like each pig)

that they aren't the reason why Easter is BIG.

Oh, sure, ham is yummy and egg hunts are fun,

but Easter’s a symbol of new life begun.

The birds in their nests and the buds on the trees

remind us of nature and sweet mysteries…

Of birth and of death and of living again

because of our Savior, who died for all men.

He rose on the third day, that first Easter morn,

when death was defeated and hope was reborn.

(This made Bunny smile, just as all bunnies do

whenever they think of things lovely and true.)

I'm telling his tale to remind everyone

that Easter's about something more than just fun.

It’s all about Jesus, as simple as that.

(But I’ll still be wearing my cute Easter hat.)

And you can wear yours, too. How perfect is that?

=)

Happy Easter to Jeremiah, Carli, and Bryce

with lots and lots of love

from

♥ Grandma Anderson ♥

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