A Football Tale for Christmas The Big Rabbit thought he had it all. Big burrow, worked hard, the other local rabbits were envious. Once a year The Big Rabbit went on holiday, it was taken for granted, he took it for granted. Those years where things had gone well, thered always been a good crop nearby and he always knew where to find the greenest shoots. The other rabbits made do. Of course the hares dominated, they were bigger and stronger but from time to time the The Big Rabbit got the best bits first and his family trusted and loved him the more for it. The Big Rabbit in his well appointed burrow full of a comfortable family members pottered along and the world was a nice place. One year, the crop failed. The Big Rabbit returned from his holiday to find that a disease had blighted the crop. Things became tough. The big burrow needed a lot of energy to keep it in shape and the family were tired. They became listless and the rabbit seemed powerless to act. The other local rabbits had always been used to foraging and sometimes even fighting with the hares to get a share of what they needed. They kept lean and found a way, even in crumbling burrows where only the youngest orphaned rabbits lived, they kept busy, found what they could, helped each other. In the big burrow, The Big Rabbits family stayed in their chambers. They stayed in bed, angry with the world, waiting for The Big Rabbit do something, to save them. The years of comfort and expectation were over and the other rabbits, who had envied The Big Rabbit in his big burrow began to rejoice. See how the mighty Big Rabbit has fallen they said and they winked at each other even as they fought each other for scraps or shoots left by the hares. As Christmas approached The Big Rabbit knew that the game was up. There would be no Christmas dinner and the frosts and the howling winds of January were around the corner. One night in December, The Big Rabbit hopped out into the world. He left the burrow, ascended the steep bank and reached the edge of The Road. He didnt know where he was going, perhaps hed find something, out there, where it was dangerous. When the milk lorry came, it came with a rumble but The Rabbit didnt hear. He had long since given up listening. It was the lights. As he stared into oblivion, the powerful lights transfixed him. One last look into the light. The family missed him. Hed looked after them for many years, provided for them and given them a good life and his good deeds would be remembered forever but now the family had to learn to fend for itself, find a new leader, organise the big burrow. It would take a toll, a great cost and some of the family who were unwilling or unable to help would have to be turned out into the harsh, cruel world. The hares sneered and the other rabbits winked but the burrow was still warm and offered shelter from the storm. Some of the other rabbits were still envious (if they were truthful) and away from the full beam of the milk lorrys lights, a tiny flicker of hope still remained. It was the flicker of hope that lights the narrow path of the wise....not the blind alley of the faithful.
Posted on: Sun, 07 Dec 2014 09:30:07 +0000
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