Fear

I see this rabbit all the time, so much so that I’ve named him Peter.  You’ll know him by the notch on his left ear and the reddish stripe down the back of his neck.

He was frozen in fear when I found him this morning, in the process of making himself as small a target as possible.  He didn’t look poised to run.  He looked too scared to move. 

When I had pulled into the church parking lot this morning, I passed a man on his bicycle and his pretty tame, but very large boxer.  When I stepped out of the car and saw Peter sitting there in the trees, I knew why he was frightened.

I made my way around the church, taking other pictures, passing another rabbit in the playground.  As I made my way back to the car, the last thing I expected to see was Peter, still in the same spot, still pulling himself into a small ball of fluff.  I stopped five feet from him.

“It’s okay,” I told him.  “You’re okay.”

I took a step toward him and he stood up and hopped toward a plant which he began sniffing.

How wonderful it would be if in the midst of our pain and fear, someone would step in and tell us it’s okay.  Actually, someone already is.  God is.  All we have to do is listen.