Bunny Trail
By Alex T. Smith
Petunia
is a small eastern cotton tail with a furry grey hair. She lays on her side, peacefully
asleep, before the break of dawn. The brisk spring air makes Petunia’s nose
scrunch and wiggle. She smells the outside den from within her den and senses
for predators in the area. Satisfied that she is safe, she pokes her front
outside of the den. As she listens to the surrounding area her long ears swivel
like a radar dish, scanning for sounds of danger. Further satisfied that she is
safe, petunia hops out into the familiar surroundings search of food. Petunia
quickly hops along her simple bunny trail stopping every once in a while to
nibble on a patch of grass. Petunia stops when she reaches the familiar meadow.
She hops around under the cover of small grass until she reaches a large patch
of dandelion greens that she is so fond of. As she noms on the greens her furry
body sways gently in the strong breeze.
Petunia eats her fill,
and then follows the rest of the bunny trail to the river. She watches cautious
from behind a bush, be summing up the courage to hop over for drink. She
quickly laps up a mouth full of water and sneezes quietly as the cold water
tickles her nose. She notices a small fish swim by, but pays no attention to
it, because after all it isn’t food. Petunia sees quick movement out of corner
of her eye. She quickly turns and sees a sleek red fox hunched over a small
rock. Petunia’s eyes widen and she stands completely still. The fox stand just
as still, until its front right foot moves just a little too much for her comfort,
and petunia dashes off. The fox pursues for petunia for a short while before
giving up. Petunia runs for a few minute after the fox gave up chase. She stops
in a small thicket and quickly pants, as her heart beats so quickly that it is
on a nearly continual beat.
Petunia rest for a good
ten minutes before she is able to relax. Now petunia’s interest returns back to
her nest. She hops cautiously around the bunny trail. She reenters the meadow
and hops to about the center of the grass sea before a flying shadow makes her
freeze as her spine tingles with fear. There is a hawk circling above in many
lazy circles. Petunia tucks her ears close to her body and assumes the shape of
a small clump of grass. The hawk circles for a while before giving up and leaving.
Petunia remains still in anticipation of the hawks return. But it never comes.
Petunia gets up and hops along the bunny trail once again. She notices small
squirrels climbing in the trees and a few acorns falling as a result, but she
keeps moving. Only one thing is on her mind.
Petunia reaches her den
and approaches it cautiously. She smells for unfamiliar
scents and scans for unfamiliar sounds. Petunia hops down into her den, and
finds each of her five bunnies all accounted for. Their small fragile eyes are
still too weak to be opened. She allows them to suckle her teats, for her warm
milk. She lays down on top of them to share her loving warmth. She curls up for
a small nap and wakes up peacefully. And hops out of the den today. She repeats
her previous journey several more times in that day, although she does not meet
any more threatening creatures along the way. She returns to that very same
patch of dandelion again just as the sun begins to drop. She hears the stirring
of the night time creatures waking from their slumber. This tells petunia that
it is time for her to return to her den once more for the night.
She hops down the bunny
trail as the last lights escape from the horizon. She enters her den, and once
again snuggles with her tiny bunnies. She drifts to sleep as she reflects on
her productive day. She survived another day in the deep woods. Her bunnies
have gone to bed with a full bellies, and she has defended her nest from all
manners of creatures that would love to break apart her small family. Petunia,
satisfied with today’s work drifts of to sleep only to wake again to repeat her
schedule the next day.
