Escapes

Sometimes you just gotta laugh, in spite or despite the circumstances. "Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me." This is one of the few Mother Goose rhymes with which I disagree. Sometimes words are intended to hurt or injure, so for those of us who take words to heart we have to learn to work through the stages of pain: soulful hurtings, followed by angry burstings, that finally settle into peaceful cravings, and at last the sun shines through the clouds opening the skies for laughter.

Today the weather is cool and my injuries are healing and my heart is laughing. I settled into my yard escapes watching the birds peck at the orange marmalade, the squirrels skitter up, down, and around the trees, and rabbits crouching hiding from Lucy whose nose is also exploring. I laugh inwardly and outwardly at some of the antics the animals enjoy. I explore my gardens looking for flowers in bloom and new ones brought in by the birds. In one garden I buried torn up pages from Alice in Wonderland that had been given to me nearly sixty years ago by my Aunt Della. It became yellowed then molded and I just couldn't keep it, so one day a few summers ago, I let it go. I tore it up and let it settle in my gardens, thinking that Alice, Lewis Carroll and Della would agree that was a proper burial.

This morning I found a corner of "Alice" still poking up through the mulch. About two steps later Lucy discovered a rabbit hole. Oh, my heart pounded because she so often brings me baby rabbits in her soft mouth, that is not soft enough. Luckily, this rabbit den was empty but we have so many more. I remembered the other day when Lucy went on the chase of a rabbit and it couldn't get out. (She's not one to kill or maim, she just chases to get them off her turf.) Th rabbit fearing for its life, kept pounding the fence trying to make it through without success. Lucy just stood and watched while I frantically opened the gate and hollered at the rabbit, "Here get out, here!" "Yea, I really did that." Guess it's just instinct. The rabbit ignored me and found another bigger hole and escaped leaving some of its hair behind. So for the next few days I left the gate open until today.

This morning I went to work to save the rabbits, one hole at a time! With enough tools I opened an escape route for the rabbits. So far I've only opened one hole but have future plans for

several more. After I cut and curled the fence wire, I laughed. "What rabbit is going to find this," I thought. That's when I made the sign. So simple, "Exit." Think they can read?

I think they can because Lucy's already reading the sign and has a clue. Laughter really is the best medicine.