Careful what you eat before bed...

Brian the Rabbit
©2006, Basil Sands

The rabbit sat quietly on the bench next to the table
My friend turned toward me and said, quite matter-of-factly,
“That rabbit talks”

I looked in disbelief at the small grey and white ball of fluff
Gently chewing its cud and staring at some unseen point under the table

I walked over and looked at the rabbit
Who stopped chewing his cud and looked straight up at me
With a stare like a two year old
Waiting to see what’s going to happen next

Making eye contact with him, I asked directly,
“Do you talk?”

He stared at me for a moment, motionless
“Yes,” came the reply from the small pink mouth with large front teeth

Too shocked to think of anything else to say I continued with
“How long have you been able to talk?”

To which he replied
“Always.”

Still in a stunned state of mind I said
“Do all animals talk?”

“No” he responded, “Only those who can.”

I reached my hands toward him to introduce myself
But before I could say a word
He took a few short hops and was in my arms

“My name, is Brian. I’m a rabbit.” He said
“Let me show you around,”
And led me on a tour of this house and its people from a rabbits perspective.

After several hours of touring and discussing various topics
Such as Teflon coated frying pans
And which kind of rabbit pellet was actually the tastiest,
We returned to the table where I sat him back down.

My friend had left but the pillow was now getting uncomfortable.
Turning to the right I saw my alarm clock
It was 2:35 am and the room was very dark
As my mind cleared,
I realized that it probably was not a good idea to have such a strong cup of coffee,
Not to mention the frosted biscotti
So close to bed time.