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!