The Tale Of Seraphina
Once upon a time and in a lush grass-covered meadow not so very far away, there lived a beautiful cotton-tailed rabbit named Seraphina. The young cottontail lived in the meadow with her mother and father, as well as a passel of brothers and sisters. Other families of rabbits also called the meadow home and all was at peace in the field of grass.
Yes, there were bushytailed red foxes and sly bobcats living in the nearby woods, but they seemed to prefer hunting in the dense tree-filled timbers that lay just beyond the spring-fed creek and rarely ventured onto the meadow. Even then the hunters of rabbits only crossed the meadow, eventually blending into the woods that lay far on the other side.
Seraphina and her kind drank from the spring and found nourishment in the abundance of snapdragons that grew in the meadow. The warm sunlit days encouraged the tender plants to grow in number and the gentle rain that fell on cool summer nights gave thirst-quenching drinks to the black-eyed Susans. Life just couldn’t be any better for a growing bunny like Seraphina.
The first summer and the ensuing winter passed as Seraphina grew into an adult rabbit. Then came a day when she met her suitor, Wilhelm. He was a handsome rabbit and, as the two shared a sip of water from the creek, he spoke to her in bunny talk.
“Hi, my name is Wilhelm. What’s your name?” Now Seraphina had learned what plants were scrumptious, how to find the best spot to drink from the creek and how to recognize the signs that the cold winter snows would soon cover the meadow, but she had never learned how to speak to boy bunnies.
“Seraphina,” she softly answered. “What an unusual yet beautiful name,” he answered.
“Do you often drink from this spot in the creek?”
“Yes, it is my favorite place and I have been told that the fox and the bobcat never come to this place.” Seraphina, having filled herself with cold clear water excused herself.
“Well, it was nice to meet you and maybe we’ll see each other again,” and indeed they did.
The two rabbits began sharing the plants in the meadow as they talked about the shapes of the clouds in the sky, the emerald colors of the leaves on the trees and what might lie beyond the woods for, you see, rabbits are curious creatures.
After the passage of some days in the grassy field, Wilhelm asked if Seraphina would go with him.
“Will you leave the meadow and go with me to the place beyond the woods?”
Not a word was spoken for several moments as Seraphina wondered what the unknown world beyond the trees might be, like but she had fallen in love with Wilhelm.
“I love this meadow but I will go anywhere with you,” she answered as her white cottontail bobbed to and fro.
So it was decided the two would venture to a land of mystery but, before leaving, goodbyes were in order. Seraphina rubbed her cheeks against those of her mother as she said goodbye and she wiggled her nose as her brothers and sisters looked on as she walked to the stream for one final sip of water. There she found two old friends, Roberta the raccoon and Chrissy the possum.
You may not know this, but rabbits speak fluent raccoon and opossum.
“Well, I’m leaving this meadow. Wilhelm and I are going to the place that lies beyond the trees.”
“But how will you get there,” asked Roberta. “If you go into the dark woods the bobcat or fox might eat you.”
“Wilhelm will protect me,” she replied.
“Why are you going to a place that may not have the lush plants and clear water that this place, your home, has?”
“Wilhelm tells me that he is sure the new place will be better than this meadow.”
So it came to be that the two rabbits cautiously hopped between the trees in the woods and finally there it was, a treeless field.
“I told you,” Wilhelm spoke, “a new meadow, a new home for us.”
Seraphina was pleased to leave the woods behind as the two stepped onto the new grass.
The grass wasn’t as soft as that of her home, the sky was cloud covered and a small pond very near the woods contained algae-covered water. The nights were cold and those dark moonless nights found the two newcomers huddled quietly together as the fox and bobcat searched the field for food — tender and succulent young bunnies perhaps.
Time passed slowly and Seraphina’s unhappiness and fears grew. This was no Shangri-la, no utopia. She and Wilhelm began to quarrel as their stomachs ached from hunger and the sleepless nights came one after another.
Finally, Seraphina made a difficult decision. “I’m going home,” she said. “Will you come with me?”
Was it pride, stubbornness or had the love Wilhelm once had in his heart for her grown stale?
“No, I’m staying here.” The reason for his answer didn’t matter for her decision had been made.
“Goodbye,” Seraphina softly whispered to Wilhelm as she one last time rubbed her soft warm fur against his.
Seraphina made the worrisome walk through the scary and dark woods. She scurried between the trees pausing now and then only long enough for a nose wiggle and a glance here and there. After what seemed like forever, she once again felt the soft grass on her feet as she sprung onto the beautiful sunlit meadow, her home. A sip from the creek would quench her thirst and as she drank she saw a shadow fall alongside her. It was Roberta.
“Well, I see that you’ve returned to the meadow. Was the new place not to your liking?”
“It was not,” she answered. “I have learned a lesson and, although I realize that this meadow will not be like the meadow of my childhood, it is a better place and one that I will always cherish.”
“You are right,” Roberta agreed. “Home will always be a special place but it can never be as it was when you were a small young bunny.”
‘The snapdragons and Black-eyed Susans won’t be as plentiful or taste as sweet. The sun will not shine as brightly as remembered, the woods will seem darker and closer and the water in the creek will not be as cold. And most of all, you will be looked upon as a full-grown rabbit, not an infant cottontail bunny.”
“I know,” Seraphina reluctantly acknowledged. “The meadow hasn’t changed; I have. But it is now and will forever be my home and I am strong. After all, I was named after Seraphs, the strongest of all God’s angels.”
This story is about rabbits but it is also a tale about people for, you see, in many ways, the lives of rabbits and humans are very similar. STAN FINE IS A RETIRED POLICE OFFICER AND VERIZON SECURITY DEPARTMENT INVESTIGATOR WHO, AFTER RETIRING IN 2006, MOVED FROM TAMPA, FLA., TO NOEL, MO. STAN’S CONNECTION TO NOEL CAN BE TRACED BACK TO HIS GRANDPARENTS WHO LIVED MOST OF THEIR LIVES THERE. STAN BEGAN WRITING AFTER THE PASSING OF HIS WIFE ROBIN IN 2013. OPINIONS EXPRESSED ARE THOSE OF THE AUTHOR.