What the Rabbit Taught Me

The cottontail rabbit looking as anxious as it does wisdomous.

Even though this is just a cheap gas station cigar that comes in a four-pack for a little over a dollar, and engaging in the act of smoking is entirely habitual, I still feel the need to remember that tobacco in and of itself is a tool used for prayer and ceremony in my culture. As I sit here and mindfully puff my cigar in my SUV full of trash that I have not yet taken out, I'm listening to the birds, feeling the gentle touch of the wind, and watching the rabbits graze on the freshly mowed grass in my front yard.

There's something inspiring about the fact that the rabbit knows I can be dangerous, but it still lives its life and enjoys the delicious delicacy of sprouting spring grass. I'm sure it's even aware of the hawk and other predatory birds flying above or near my house, but just as a deer grazes in the meadow while knowing a wolf could be lurking in the bushes at the tree line, these rabbits don't let fear stop them from living their lives. They trust in both their instincts to know when to escape danger, and their physical ability to keep themselves alive another day if something should turn for the worst.

There's a lesson in this observation, but what am I going to tell my friends? Am I going to tell them the rabbit told me this? They already think I'm a walking stereotype of a Native American person, so that's not really going to help my case. My Pennsylvania Dutch ancestry also carries a close relationship with nature, especially the old order communities like the Amish and the Mennonites, but that heritage never seems to come to mind when someone finds out I'm learning lessons from a cottontail. Stereotypes are funny like that. I wish the stereotype was that humanity as a species, regardless of cultural heritage, should still be so close to the natural world that we find ourselves learning lessons by watching its patterns and behavior.

None of my friends need to know the trigger of my philosophical contemplation, so I'll keep it between myself and my pen. I'm very grateful to the rabbit for giving me something to think about.