Rabbits #99WordStories

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This week at the Carrot Ranch, Charli Mills challenged writers to In 99 words (no more, no less), write a story that includes rabbits. Is it a family? A strange planet? Some crazy bunny person’s pets? Who are they and what are they doing? Go where the prompt leads!

I immediately thought of the rabbit holes that many find themselves in when conducting an internet search. I wondered how the rabbits might feel with all those unwelcome intruders, so that’s where I went with my story. I’m not sure if it works or not.

In the Rabbit Hole

Edward completed every form, followed all protocols, even smiled sweetly at bully boss bunny; but his request for leave was denied.

“When numbers ease,” his supervisor promised.

“If ever,” muttered Edward. The monotony was as overwhelming as the numbers that increased exponentially. Who said rabbits multiplied quickly? If only they’d find another burrow to tumble into.

 “Next!”

Edward recorded the unremarkably similar responses without enthusiasm.

“What brought you here? Where did you begin? Did you find what you wanted? What do you want now?”

“Out of this rabbit hole.”

“No more than I. Close all tabs. Start over. Next!”

And while on the subject of rabbits, I was pleased to see the prompt’s relevance to Chinese New Year celebrations which begin on January 22nd. In the Chinese Zodiac, this year is the Year of the Rabbit. My daughter and my granddaughter (son’s daughter) are Rabbits, having been born in previous Years of the Rabbit.

The Chinese Zodiac repeats in a cycle of twelve animal years. Unrelated to her Chinese animal year, when she was little, my daughter loved rabbits and had quite a collection of rabbit ornaments and toys. She would have loved a pet bunny, but they are not permitted in Queensland as rabbits are an imported species that has been quite destructive to native wildlife and agriculture.

When the suggestion was made to replace the Easter Bunny with the Easter Bilby (to raise awareness of the bilby’s vulnerability), my daughter was adamant that it should remain the Bunny. She refused to acknowledge the bilby at all. Fortunately, her heart softened towards bilbies as she got older and became more concerned about the conservation of the species rather than its role at Easter.

Another interesting connection is that, in Chinese culture, rabbits represent the moon and stories are told about the rabbit in the moon rather than the man in the moon as Westerners often tell. Having heard the story, I am always fascinated to see the rabbit in the moon and consider it more recognisable than the man. Have a look next time you’re out on a bright night and let me know what you think.

If you wish to know more about Chinese New Year, please check out a wonderful resource that fellow blogger Mabel Kwong wrote with me a few years ago. It’s on the readilearn website and is free to access. It’s called Let’s read about Chinese New Year.

If you haven’t already met Mabel, then I suggest you pop over to her eponymous blog Mabel Kwong and have a read. Mabel explores her experience of being Asian and living in multicultural Australia. I learn so much from her about how to treat others with respect. Her posts are always a delight to read and incredibly thought-provoking.

Now that’s a little rabbit hole I’ve drawn you into.

As you know, I’ve been having a bit of a break, a sabbatical, from blogging, as I try to get my head into gear for 2023. Last week, Charli’s prompt was to write about a sabbatical. I didn’t join in, but many others did. You can read their stories at the Carrot Ranch here.

Thank you blog post

Thank you for reading. I appreciate your feedback. Please share your thoughts.

63 thoughts on “Rabbits #99WordStories”

  4. Pingback: Rabbits Collection « Carrot Ranch Literary Community

  5. Annika Perry

    Norah, I think we can all identify with the rabbit warren of the internet – yes, close those tabs! 😀It’s interesting to read about the Rabbit in the Moon and I will definitely take a look. Such a lovely shout-out to Mabel – I’ve been following her blog for many years and always enjoy learning from her and her thoughts about so many topics!

    Liked by 3 people

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  6. Jules

    The web can be a rabbit hole! I am very careful about the links I ‘follow’.

    As for the rabbit in the moon – I always look for it when the moon is full. One year I went looking on the net… and well there are many visions of the rabbit on the moon. I’m not even sure if the one I see was among them. But I have read some of the different versions of the story of how the rabbit got there 🙂

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      1. Jules

        I’ve actually found another ‘hare’ in the sky – in my sky anyway – under Orion the Hunter – the constellation Lepus – (Wiki) Lepus ( colloquially) is a constellation lying just south of the celestial equator. Its name is Latin for hare. It is located below—immediately south—of Orion (the hunter), and is sometimes represented as a hare being chased by Orion or by Orion’s hunting dogs… 🙂

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          1. Jules

            I am using David H. Levy’s Guide to the Stars Northern Hemisphere Latitudes 30 degrees to 60 degrees North. You probably could get a similar guide for your area.

            This link may help;
            https://www.constellation-guide.com/constellation-map/southern-constellations/

            When you click on the ‘map’ and enlarge it – Orion is pretty much all the way to the right and the Hare/ Lupus is just to the left. But I’m not sure at what point in the year you would be able to see it.

            There are other sites as well. Good luck star hunting 🙂

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            1. Norah Post author

              That’s cool, Jules. Thank you.
              Actually, my children gave me a pretty nice birthday present last year. They gave me a framed map of the sky over the place where and when I was born. I didn’t know you could get that. What thoughtful and novel idea.

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                1. Norah Post author

                  A gorgeous little boy whom I taught many years ago now has a star named after him. I’m sure it shines as brightly as he did, and still does in my memory. He had muscular atrophy and passed the year after I taught him. He was just seven or eight years old. Beautiful child. 💖🌟

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                    2. Jules

                      Speaking of stars…
                      I have a bookmark with a logo of a dog outlining the Dog in the stars; DogStar books…for the Sirius Reader… 😀

                      Sirius, also called Alpha Canis Majoris or the Dog Star, brightest star in the night sky, with apparent visual magnitude −1.46. It is a binary star in the constellation Canis Major.

                      Liked by 2 people

                    4. Jules

                      I don’t know about the publishing house. But you can visit this book store for book, art, music, coffee, events, community http://www.dogstarbooks.com – Buying and selling scholarly antiquarian and better books 🙂

                      I know there is a radio or techy music serivic called Sirius Radio – which I guess also fits since the ‘trafficing’ goes through the ‘stars’ – or rather the satellites in space 😀

                      Liked by 2 people

          1. pedometergeek

            Norah, not only have I looked up at the moon and seen the rabbit (with the help of Googling it), but I referenced you yesterday on The Haiku Foundation’s Haiku Dialogue for this week about the rabbit. I only mentioned your first name though to protect the innocent (you) from the guilty (me). ~nan

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              1. pedometergeek

                Norah,
                The haiku was about the rabbit in the moon and since you were the person who introduced me to the rabbit, I figured you were worth mentioning. It was on the Haiku Dialogue last week. The far reaching effects of knowing writers from around the world. ~nan
                😉

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                  1. pedometergeek

                    It wasn’t my haiku, but another poet’s. Having said that, I will share her haiku with you.

                    a rabbit
                    on the full moon
                    pareidolia
                    ~Nitu Yumnam

                    Here was mine (since you mentioned it):
                    a box turtle’s pleasure
                    in his wiggling meal
                    –worm moon
                    ~Nancy Brady, 2023

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                    1. Norah Post author

                      Thank you for sharing, Nan. I had to look up the word ‘pareidolia’. It’s very fitting for Nitu’s haiku.
                      I like yours too. It’s very cute. worm moon is very original. (I guess the ‘very’ is redundant, but I’ll leave it there anyway.) 💖

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                    2. pedometergeek

                      Yes, Norah, paredolia is perfect for Nitu’s haiku, and worm moon is one of the names for the full moon in March. There is also sugar moon and sap moon; there may be others. Glad you enjoyed reading the haiku.

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                    4. pedometergeek

                      Norah,
                      Some of these (full) moon names, I wasn’t familiar with until just recently either. Because I write haiku, I have learned that many names are attributed to the moon each month by various cultures. Some I use, most I just file away for future reference.

                      We’re writers, Norah…we learn things! 🙂

                      Liked by 1 person

  10. robbiesinspiration

    Hi Norah, I thought your piece was extremely clever. Well done. I knew about rabbits being an import (and pest) in Australia and the problems with the disease called myxomatosis. I did not know about the rabbit on the moon. How very interesting.

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        1. Norah Post author

          I’m a Dragon. My year is up in 2 years. I think 2020 was the last Year of the Rat. I hope you have a wonderful year, Robbie. Thinking of you. 🙂

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  14. CarolCooks2

    Preparations are in full swing here for the Chinese New Year, Norah I’m sure there will, be some brilliant dances and costumes portraying the rabbit. I was surprised that rabbits are not allowed in Queensland although I understand why…Good response to the prompt, Norah I’m forever down a rabbit hole…lol

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