A Dream Come True

CHAPTER 8

George and Jennifer loved to visit Harry the Hermit, especially his dog Tippins. George and Jennifer would bake cookies and bring some fruit for Harry, because they LOVED to hear all his great stories.  One day when they were out visiting their friend, he told them this story.

"Once there was a little boy named Andrew, who loved rabbits and the rabbits loved him.  Whenever, he went into the woods, the rabbits would come out to meet him.  Andrew would sit down with his little friends and spend the afternoon talking to each one of them.  He just seemed to know when one of his little friends were hurting and feeling sad. Andrew was a good listener.

One Fall afternoon when Andrew was in the woods, the rabbits came hopping out to him all at the same time. They were scared rabbits all right!   The fur on their backs was standing straight up and they all were talking at the same time.  "Help, help, help,! It is the big red fox.  He is in the woods again.  You have got to help us.  Last winter we lost many of our dearest and closest friends, " explained the scared little rabbits.

"Good heavens, I don't know what to do fellers?" said Andrew.  "let me think about it."  So Andrew left the rabbits in tears while he went home to try and figure out what to do.

That night Andrew couldn't sleep.  He was very restless thinking about his little friends' problem. Winter was coming and Andrew knew that when it snows it would be easy to track rabbit prints and who knows how many would survive until the spring.  Andrew got on his knee and began to pray, "Dear Jesus, these little friends are yours.  Please help me to know how to care for them?"  He tossed and turned and tossed and turned, and finally he fell into a deep sleep.

It was in that deep sleep that he had a very unusual dream.  Could it be possible that God was speaking to him?  He saw this huge bunny cage up on four legs in his back yard.  It had many rooms in it.  A room for each of his little friends. Then he woke up!  What could this mean?

Andrew prayed and asked Jesus what his dream meant.  Then he got this idea, a RABBIT MOTEL  for the winter.  That's it. Andrew was so excited.  He called all the boy clubs and girl clubs in the area for a big meeting. After he told the children about the rabbit's blight and how scared they were, they all decided to help Andrew build the rabbit motel and to help care for them throughout the winter months.  By Spring the big red fox would be gone and they could run and play again.

Andrew was so happy. After the Rabbit Motel was built, Andrew went back into the woods.  He hardly entered the woods before all the bunnies came running out to meet him. "Are you going to help us?", they all asked excitedly. "I sure am little fellers.  You just follow me to your new home for the winter."  One by one all the little bunnies followed Andrew to the RABBIT MOTEL,  and there they were cared for during the cold hard snowy weather. In fact, every winter from then on,  all the little bunnies knew exactly where to head when they heard the big red fox was in the woods again.

That was a great story Harry.  Is it a true story?  

"Well, not exactly, George, you know how I loved to tell a good story." explained Harry. " Now, you children run along home, before your parents wonder where you have been." 

The children left for home.  You can imagine the story that was told at the dinner table that night! 

The Miracle in the Bush

Bobbi Jacobs lived with his mother and father out in the country.  Bobbi's daddy was out of work and it was very hard to find work.  All their savings were nearly gone.  His mother was a very thrifty woman.  In the summer she canned vegetables from the garden.  There  were tomatoes for spaghetti sauce, beets, beans, peas, cucumbers for pickles and apples for apple sauce.  They were fully prepared for the long cold winters.

One morning Bobbi woke up very ill.  His mom and dad didn't know what they were going to do.  His fever was getting higher and higher.  They had just enough gas in the car to get into town to see the doctor.

Old Dr.Smith took one look at Bobbi and knew immediately what was the matter. Bobbi had contracted a disease that only eggs could cure.  He told his mother that for the next six weeks he was to have a least one egg a day. Bobbi's mother was very discouraged because there was no way she was going to be able to provide an egg for her sick little boy for the next six weeks.  That would be impossible.  She had hardly enough money to pay the doctor, never mind paying for eggs.

That night when they got home Bobbi, his mother and father knelt down on their knees and prayed for God to provide the eggs they needed  for Bobbie's illness. Prayer was the only solution to their problem.

In the morning, Bobbi's mother looked out her kitchen window and noticed a red hen walking out of a bush. She wondered, "whatever was a hen doing in our yard?"  Her curiosity couldn't wait.  She went outside only to discover an egg in a nest in the bushes.  What a surprise it was.  The Lord had answered their prayer.  She took the egg and cooked it for her son. 

That night, again they prayed, for an egg.  Sure enough, in the morning was another egg in the same nest and again the next morning another egg.  This went on for the six weeks until  Bobbi was once again strong and healthy.  Then on the morning of the sixth week, Bobbi went out to collect an egg, but the little red hen wasn't there. She had laid her last egg for Bobbi.  She was gone. They never saw her again. Where do you  think she came from and who do you think sent her?

The little red hen is a story about the faithfulness of God and how He provided  for a sick little boy.  Bobbi is grown up now with a family of his own, but he still remembers the little red hen and how her eggs were provided for him when he was very sick and his father was out of work. 

Boys and girls, never underestimate the Lord's mysterious ways. Bobbi's parents  didn't have enough money to pay for medicine they needed for their son and when they prayed the Lord answered their prayers.  Look how the Lord provided for Bobbi and his parents. The Lord Jesus loves to take care of His children.  He is watching over you while you play with your friends or when you are sick.  He will always take care of you, my little friends.

Belinda, a Special Friend

When Mom Mom was a little girl, I lived on a farm.  My daddy milked 60 cows in the morning and at night. When I was only eight years old , it was my job to be in the milk room at 4:00 pm every afternoon to set up the milking machines and help my brothers to clean the scuttles behind the cows. Later, we had to pitch the hay down from the hay mow for our father to feed the cows.  There were also chickens to feed and eggs to collect. There was always work to be done on the farm.

When I was nine years old, my daddy give me a little calf all to myself.  I named her Belinda.  Every morning before I went to school, I would get up, dress in my barn cloths and go out to the barn to feed Belinda.  I would give her a big hug around her neck, come back in the house and dress for school.

 I loved Belinda.  She was my best friend.  I thought a lot about her during school and could hardly wait to get home and play.  My daddy asked me if I would like to take Belinda to a 4-H fair in the Spring.  I thought that it would be a great idea.  He said that I would have to work hard to get her ready.  Every day I had to wash her all over with tide detergent, using Clorox  to wash out the stains on her sides and tail..  She would get real messy after sleeping in her pen at night.  She was the cleanest calf in the barn.  My daddy said that I was doing a good job, but I had to start training her if I wanted to take her to the fair.  By the time I took her to the fair, she had grown into a  beautiful young heifer.


The first time I put a halter on Belinda, she did not like it at all!  She yanked me all over the barn yard until I got her under control.  Finally, Belinda surrendered and I was able to lead her slowly around. She followed me very well. I really felt that she would be a blue ribbon winner at the fair.

Belinda and I never got to the fair that year because Belinda got very sick.  One morning my daddy called me into the kitchen.  We sat down together and he told me that Belinda was going blind and would not be able to go to the 4-H fair. I started to cry,"Daddy, you've got to help her.  She can't go blind."


My daddy took me out to see Belinda.  She was laying down, so helpless.  He showed me the red in her eyes and that it was contagious to other heifers.  Daddy had to separate her from the rest of the cows. But, he did have some good news.  He told me, "Belinda is going to have a baby this Fall" 


I didn't now what to say. Was I going to be a grandma an aunt or what?  I grabbed Belinda around the neck and said,"You can't go blind, not now!"  Belinda looked up at me and licked my hand to let me know how  much she loved me.  "Belinda, you are going to have a baby and I will help you to get around."


That Saturday Belinda left the barn and was put into a special pen outside.  She was quarantined, and left alone in her world of darkness.  I was her only light.  My daddy made me keep her away from the other cows until she would have her baby calf.


Late in September Belinda had her baby calf.  I was in school at the time.  When I got home and went to see to Belinda, there laying beside her was the most beautiful black and white baby calf.  "Oh Belinda," I exclaimed, "I wish you could see your sweet baby.  She looks just like you.  I am going to name her Chloe."


After Chloe was born, daddy had to take Belinda away before she infected her baby.  I never knew where she went, but my daddy told me that it was the best place for her.  I never saw Belinda again. 

Chloe,s mother wasn't there to nurse her, so I fed her special milk with a big bottle. I  felt that I had to be Chloe's mother.  I spoiled Chloe so much. I even trained her to come up to the kitchen window to eat Ritz crackers out of my hand. 


Chloe wasn't like her mother, and she wasn't afraid of  anything. She grew into a beautiful heifer that I was able to take to the 4-h fairs where She won many blue ribbons. After a day at the fair, Chloe and I would go out into the meadow and I would tell her stories about her mother. I know Belinda would of been so proud of her.

The pictures are not the original, but the closest that I could find to tell the story.

Operation Rescue

This story is about a thoughtful and kind little boy named Jack and his favorite friend Pal.  Jack and Pal had been friends ever since Pal was a puppy.  They did everything together.  They especially loved to go into the Green Forest to visit their friends the bunnies.  Every Spring there would be new baby bunnies and Jack and Pal wanted to meet them.  Whenever they would go into the Green Forest, the rabbits would come out to meet them.  Jack would sit down with his little friends and spend the afternoon talking to each of them.  He just seemed to know how to comfort them, when one was hurting or sad .


One afternoon  when Jack and Pal went to visit their friends in the woods, all the little bunnies came hopping out all at the same time.  What was the matter?  They looked so scared. Their little ears were all up straight and their noses were twitching. "Hey, little guys," said Jack, "What is all the fess about?"  They all started to talk at once. "Help, help, help!!!  It is the big red fox.  He is in the woods again.  We lost so many members of our families the last time he was here.  You have got to help us!" anxiously exclaimed the bunnies. 

"Good heavens, I don't now what to do fellers" said Jack fearfully.  "I will have to go home and pray about this.  I know that our Creator will know just the right thing to do for you."  Winter was coming on and this made the matter more urgent.                                                 


That night as Jack was getting ready for bed, he and Pal knelt down by his bedside and started to pray. "Dear Jesus, I don't know what to do.  Winter is coming and the bunnies are so afraid of the red fox. I need an idea?  Pal sniffed his nose under Jack's arm and cuddle closer with his two front paws in Jack's lap. He seemed to understand the urgency of Jack's prayer.


As he was crawling into bed, the Lord dropped the word ORPHANAGE  into his mind. " Was that the Lord giving him the idea? As he thought more about it, he began to picture in his mind the bunny orphanage in his back  yard for the winter months. He could build enough bunny hutches to house all the bunnies and to feed them through the cold months. Jack was so excited, he could not contain himself.  He ran into his father's bedroom to explain  his idea.  His father told him that he would think about it and to go back to bed.

In the morning at the breakfast table, you know what was on Jack's mind, the BUNNY ORPHANAGE, of course. Daddy agreed that he would help Jack to build several bunny hutches and suggested that he might make it a Boy's Club project with their fathers too.  That meant that all the boys in the club would not only help to build the hutches, but also help to care for the bunnies. It was an ideal Boy's Club activity, that they all could do together. But, they had to build fast with winter only a month away.


Soon, the bunny orphanage was complete and ready for the bunnies.  There were ten hutches built up on legs, to keep them safe from the foxes..  When Jack and Pal told the bunnies about their winter home, there wasn't one bunny missing.  They all gathered together and followed Jack and Pal to the bunny orphanage. In one afternoon they all were safe and secure in their new home.


Boy and girls...Always remember, when you have a big problem and don't know what to do, just ask the Lord Jesus how to help you.  He loves to answer your prayers, but you have to listen.  It might be just a word that the Lord drops into your mind that will be the answer for mommy and daddy to help you with.

The little girl and the pigeon

 I would like to tell you about a little girl with a kind heart.  One day, she was out walking out in the shady woods near hear home, when she noticed a pigeon's nest in a tree.  Peeping in, she saw one round, smooth, beautiful egg.  She wished very much to take it home and have it for her own.  But while she was thinking about it,  a pretty white pigeon came flying around her.  What a pleading look was in its eyes! They seemed to say" Little girl, won't you please leave my egg?  It is the only one that I have, and it will break my heart if my mate comes back to our tree home and finds it gone."

The little girl looked first at the egg and then at the sad-eyed pigeon.  Then she heard the little voice of conscience saying, "You must not destroy the happiness of the poor, little bird." So she left the egg in the cozy, little nest and went home, where her mother was waiting for her.


Not long after this, the little girl's brother became very sick.  No one seemed able to help him at all ,and every one thought he must surely die.  What a heavy heart the little girl had!  She could not play or think  of anything happy, while her only little brother lay dying.


One evening in springtime, as she was sitting by the open window in her little brother's room, a beautiful white pigeon flew  down and settled on the window sill.  Presently it seemed to say to her, "Dear, little girl, I am the pigeon whose egg you spared that day.  I come to tell you something I know will make you happy.  Last night while I was resting in the fir groves, I heard the angels whispering.  ' They said that God in heaven is looking down upon His world. He loves to see people being gentle and kind and loving. Because you were so kind and left me my one little egg, He will not let your only little brother die, but will spare him to you so that you and he might romp and play together once more'."


When it had spoken these words, the beautiful white pigeon flew away. Then the little girl turned and looked at her brother.  He was sleeping peacefully in his bed, for the first time in many days.  And there was a sweet smile upon his lips, as if the angels from heaven had been whispering their secrets to him.  From that time, he began to get better, and in a short time he was strong and rosy and romping merrily about with his little sister again.

Little Trash

Little Trash was a little kitten who lived in the alley behind the super market.  Nobody wanted her in their home because she was so dirty and smelly.  She never took a bath or cleaned herself like other little kittens did.   Poor little Trash, she lived a lonely, sad, and neglected life. Wasn't there anyone who would accept her just as she was?


One day, she decided to leave the ally to find herself a home. She traveled up and down Main Street, stopping at every door crying "Meow, Meow, I am so hungry"  All she ever heard was, "scat, scat go away you little dirty cat". Door after door would slam in her face.  Little Trash felt so rejected and unwanted. Many times she would think,  " Oh, how I long for someone to pick me up, cuddle me in their arms, and let me live in a warm cozy home." Hopelessly, little Trash,  headed back to the alley.  On her way back, a young girl noticed her walking on the sidewalk. She held out her hand and little Trash stopped and licked it. "Poor, little kitty,' said the little girl,"would you like to come home with me?


 Little Trash couldn't believe that somebody really was that kind and caring. The young girl picked her and carried her home.  When her mother saw little Trash, she said," April, that kitten smells terrible. You don't expect her to live in our home! You have to take her back to the alley"  April begged her mother, but the answer remained the same. "NO KITTEN".


When April knelt down to say her prayers that night, she asked the Lord to  help her  mommy change her mind about little Trash. She crawled into bed, thinking about the precious little kitten she had found. In the morning, she felt the Lord had answered her prayer. "If I  give little Trash a bath and make her smell clean, perhaps mommy would allow little Trash to live with me".


After April, finished her morning chores, she headed down to the alley behind the supermarket to find little Trash. The little kitty was hiding in a garbage can, eating her breakfast.  "Little Trash,' called April,'come out, come out, I want to take you home."  When little Trash heard April's voice she quickly jumped out of the garbage can . April picked her up and took her back to her house, where she had prepared a tub of warm water to wash little Trash.  The kitten was so scared and started to run away.  Little Trash wondered, "What is going on? I don't like water."  April explained to her that if she was going to live in her house she had to take a bath. She finally consented, but the most amazing thing happened. After her bathe the water was so filthy and dirty, in fact it was black as coal, but little Trash was white as snow.  April took a towel to buff her dry. Was this really little Trash?

 April took the kitten into the house to find her mother. She didn't want to tell her mother that it was little Trash, because she knew that her mother wouldn't let her keep the kitten. "Mom, where are you' she called, 'come and see a beautiful white kitten. Can I want  keep her, mommy?".  "Why, April" said mommy she is very beautiful.  You can keep her only if you promise to bathe her. "  Oh, I will mommy, ' responded April excitedly.  Holding little Trash in her arms, April hurried of upstairs to show her, her new bed right beside hers


That night when mommy came to tuck April into bed, she told her mommy how the Lord had given her the idea to give  little Trash.a bath.  Jesus knew all along that she was a beautiful white kitten that He had created.  All little Trash needed was someone to be kind and to care for her. April reached down to pat little Trash good night, when Little Trash jumped up onto her bed and snuggled close to her.  " I can't call you little Trash anymore.  You are too beautiful and silky.  I think I will call you Silky". So  Little Trash's name was changed to 'Silky 'and together April and Silky grew to be very close friends. Silky grew to love her baths once a week and she never was smelly, dirty, skinny, or lonely ever again. In fact, Silky even forgot that she was ever called little Trash.