Grandma’s Backyard
By: Tracy DelliQuadri
Annie loved to visit her grandmother’s house. The house, which stood at the top of a hill, at the end of the street and on the edge of a great forest, was old and curious. Every room in the house was overflowing with treasures from Granny’s life. There was the China Cup Collection in the kitchen, next to the front door. Each little cup was delicate and beautiful. Annie would stand for hours in front of the collection, imagining her grandmother as a child: attending afternoon tea in the parlor in her crisp white linen dresses, a parasol held in gloved hands. Button-up leather boots peeking out from underneath layers of petticoats. “How odd that people are not smiling in old time black and white photos…” Annie thought to herself one day, while looking through the picture books of Granny as a small child. You had to be careful NEVER to slam the front door, because a cup might be shaken from it’s delicate perch and shatter to the floor. The musty mothball smelling wooden trunk in the attic held Granny’s childhood clothes; treasures of another era. Sometimes, when Annie had been VERY GOOD, Granny would open the trunk and they would explore the contents inside: elegant white lace gloves with fingers long and pointed, white linen dresses with layers upon layers of underclothes, fancy hats with velvet ribbons and ostrich feathers. Annie and Granny would spend afternoons with the treasures laid out before them. China Dolls with hand painted faces and real hair would attend tea parties and Granny would fill the afternoon with stories from her childhood. Stories of how Mother expected children to be seen and not heard and of how Father would sneak the children out for a ride in the car (when they just got their first car) for an ice-cream…. How glorious and adventurous life sounded! And what fun to spend cozy afternoons up in the attic, looking through the treasures.
Annie’s favorite thing about the house, however, was the backyard. Granny’s backyard was huge and wild, on the edge of the mountain and the beginning of a great forest. There was a bay window in the living room where Annie would sit and watch for the animals that came from the forest to eat the seeds that had been put out for them. There were birds, deer, raccoons, squirrels, marmots and chipmunks. But the wild rabbits that lived underneath the shed in the winter were Annie’s favorite animals to watch.
The rabbits were small and brown and would hop around the yard only when they thought they weren’t being watched. “Rabbits are very quiet animals.” Granny whispered to Annie one day as they watched from the bay window. “Could I touch them?” Annie asked, longing to stroke the soft, brown fur. “Perhaps,” Granny answered, “if you show the rabbits that you won’t harm them, maybe they will learn to trust you.” “How do I do that?” asked Annie, excited at the thought of making friends with the rabbits. “With patience…” Granny nodded, knowingly.
Granny went into the kitchen and took a carrot from the bag in the refrigerator. “Rabbits can hardly resist carrots,” she said, “maybe, if you could be quiet and still and patient, the rabbits will come to you and eat some of this carrot.” Annie was determined to be still, and quiet, and patient… she wanted to feed the carrot to the rabbits so badly. Annie quickly put on her snow boots and jacket, took the carrot and went outside to the shed in the backyard.
The old shed, where the rabbits lived, was at the far end of the yard, right next to the great forest. Annie slowly tip-toed over to the shed, to where the rabbit’s entrance. She looked back towards the house and saw Granny watching her from the bay window. Quietly Annie knelt down and held the carrot in front of the burrow. Annie sat and sat, she sat until her arm ached from holding the carrot and her feet, inside of her snow boots, ached from the cold. Annie hadn’t even seen a rabbit peek out at her to sniff at the carrot. “Maybe the rabbits are asleep today,” Annie thought sadly. She broke off the tip of the carrot and dropped it into the burrow. “Tomorrow,” she promised, “I will come again.”
When Annie awoke the next morning, she ran to the bay window and looked out at the backyard. The sky was a brilliant blue and the sun was shining down upon the snow, creating sparkles wherever Annie looked. The rabbits were outside too, hopping around the backyard looking for good things to eat. Granny was waiting for Annie in the kitchen. “Maybe you should try talking to them, so they get used to the sound of your voice.” Granny suggested, handing a carrot to Annie. Determined to feed the rabbits, Annie walked out into the backyard and over to the burrow. Holding the carrot as far into the burrow as she could reach, while lying on her stomach in the snow, Annie whispered to the rabbits. She told the rabbits about the China Cup Collection in the kitchen and how, once, when she slammed the door a little too roughly, the pink cup (her favorite) had fallen and shattered into a million pieces all over the floor. Annie was so earnestly whispering all of her deepest secrets to the rabbits that she almost didn’t notice the little pink nose that was peeking out of the burrow.
“Oh!” she exclaimed, “What a perfect little nose you have!” The pink nose wiggled a reply. Annie became as still as she possibly could and held the carrot as far away from her body as possible. Slowly, ever so slowly, two black eyes appeared behind the nose. Annie looked at the rabbit and the rabbit looked at Annie…not quite sure if it could really trust the little girl. Suddenly Annie had to sneeze. She closed her eyes and wrinkled her nose and tried to stop the sneeze from coming, but it came anyway. “Aaaaachooooo!” When Annie opened her eyes, the rabbit was gone. Frustrated, Annie broke off another piece of the carrot and dropped it into the burrow. “Tomorrow,” she whispered, “I’ll visit again.” And stomped into the house.
The next morning Granny made french toast for breakfast and Annie smothered her plate of french toast with homemade raspberry syrup. While eating her breakfast, sitting under the China Cup Collection, Annie pondered the rabbits. She wondered if they had eaten their breakfast too, if they had been cold during the freezing winter night. Most of all she wondered if the rabbits would eventually learn to trust her. “Granny,” Annie asked, “Will the rabbits let me feed them today?” Granny reached into the refrigerator for yet another carrot. “If you are quiet and still then the rabbits will no longer be afraid of you, and they will eat your carrots.” Annie took the carrot and frowned. “But I have been quiet and still, and the rabbits are still afraid of me…..” Granny smiled at Annie’s frustrations, “You’ve forgotten the most important thing of all, you need to give the rabbits time to trust you, you need to be very patient.” With a sigh, Annie opened the door and tip-toed out to the rabbit burrow by the old wooden shed.
Every morning of her visit at Granny’s house, Annie would take a carrot from the bag in the refrigerator and go out and feed the rabbits. And every morning the rabbits would inch closer and closer only to be frightened away at the last second. Finally the last day of Annie’s visit had come; her family had arrived to take Annie home. There was only one small carrot left in the bag. Granny took the carrot out of the bag. “Here,” she said as she handed the last carrot to Annie. “Why don’t you feed the rabbits the last carrot.” Annie took the last carrot and asked, “Do you think today will be the day the rabbits eat the carrot from my hand?” “Have you been patient?” asked Granny, with a twinkle in her eye. Annie looked at her grandmother and smiled, “Yes!” she beamed, “I have been very patient!”
Annie tip-toed out to the shed, to where the rabbit burrow was, and laid down on the snow. “Please little rabbit,” she whispered softly into the burrow with her eyes closed, “Please come out to eat the carrot today.” Softly Annie started to sing, her eyes still closed. She sang every song she knew… (except for Little Bunny Foo-Foo), some of them she even sang twice in a row! In the middle of “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” Annie felt a tug on the carrot. Slowly and quietly she opened her eyes… Annie looked towards her hand and saw two beautiful little brown rabbits eating the carrot! “I knew you would come today!” she whispered to the rabbits. The rabbits only looked at her and continued to munch on the little carrot. Annie grinned and looked back at the house where her family was watching through the bay window. Granny grinned back at Annie…
……. And at the two little brown rabbits.
By: Tracy DelliQuadri
Annie loved to visit her grandmother’s house. The house, which stood at the top of a hill, at the end of the street and on the edge of a great forest, was old and curious. Every room in the house was overflowing with treasures from Granny’s life. There was the China Cup Collection in the kitchen, next to the front door. Each little cup was delicate and beautiful. Annie would stand for hours in front of the collection, imagining her grandmother as a child: attending afternoon tea in the parlor in her crisp white linen dresses, a parasol held in gloved hands. Button-up leather boots peeking out from underneath layers of petticoats. “How odd that people are not smiling in old time black and white photos…” Annie thought to herself one day, while looking through the picture books of Granny as a small child. You had to be careful NEVER to slam the front door, because a cup might be shaken from it’s delicate perch and shatter to the floor. The musty mothball smelling wooden trunk in the attic held Granny’s childhood clothes; treasures of another era. Sometimes, when Annie had been VERY GOOD, Granny would open the trunk and they would explore the contents inside: elegant white lace gloves with fingers long and pointed, white linen dresses with layers upon layers of underclothes, fancy hats with velvet ribbons and ostrich feathers. Annie and Granny would spend afternoons with the treasures laid out before them. China Dolls with hand painted faces and real hair would attend tea parties and Granny would fill the afternoon with stories from her childhood. Stories of how Mother expected children to be seen and not heard and of how Father would sneak the children out for a ride in the car (when they just got their first car) for an ice-cream…. How glorious and adventurous life sounded! And what fun to spend cozy afternoons up in the attic, looking through the treasures.
Annie’s favorite thing about the house, however, was the backyard. Granny’s backyard was huge and wild, on the edge of the mountain and the beginning of a great forest. There was a bay window in the living room where Annie would sit and watch for the animals that came from the forest to eat the seeds that had been put out for them. There were birds, deer, raccoons, squirrels, marmots and chipmunks. But the wild rabbits that lived underneath the shed in the winter were Annie’s favorite animals to watch.
The rabbits were small and brown and would hop around the yard only when they thought they weren’t being watched. “Rabbits are very quiet animals.” Granny whispered to Annie one day as they watched from the bay window. “Could I touch them?” Annie asked, longing to stroke the soft, brown fur. “Perhaps,” Granny answered, “if you show the rabbits that you won’t harm them, maybe they will learn to trust you.” “How do I do that?” asked Annie, excited at the thought of making friends with the rabbits. “With patience…” Granny nodded, knowingly.
Granny went into the kitchen and took a carrot from the bag in the refrigerator. “Rabbits can hardly resist carrots,” she said, “maybe, if you could be quiet and still and patient, the rabbits will come to you and eat some of this carrot.” Annie was determined to be still, and quiet, and patient… she wanted to feed the carrot to the rabbits so badly. Annie quickly put on her snow boots and jacket, took the carrot and went outside to the shed in the backyard.
The old shed, where the rabbits lived, was at the far end of the yard, right next to the great forest. Annie slowly tip-toed over to the shed, to where the rabbit’s entrance. She looked back towards the house and saw Granny watching her from the bay window. Quietly Annie knelt down and held the carrot in front of the burrow. Annie sat and sat, she sat until her arm ached from holding the carrot and her feet, inside of her snow boots, ached from the cold. Annie hadn’t even seen a rabbit peek out at her to sniff at the carrot. “Maybe the rabbits are asleep today,” Annie thought sadly. She broke off the tip of the carrot and dropped it into the burrow. “Tomorrow,” she promised, “I will come again.”
When Annie awoke the next morning, she ran to the bay window and looked out at the backyard. The sky was a brilliant blue and the sun was shining down upon the snow, creating sparkles wherever Annie looked. The rabbits were outside too, hopping around the backyard looking for good things to eat. Granny was waiting for Annie in the kitchen. “Maybe you should try talking to them, so they get used to the sound of your voice.” Granny suggested, handing a carrot to Annie. Determined to feed the rabbits, Annie walked out into the backyard and over to the burrow. Holding the carrot as far into the burrow as she could reach, while lying on her stomach in the snow, Annie whispered to the rabbits. She told the rabbits about the China Cup Collection in the kitchen and how, once, when she slammed the door a little too roughly, the pink cup (her favorite) had fallen and shattered into a million pieces all over the floor. Annie was so earnestly whispering all of her deepest secrets to the rabbits that she almost didn’t notice the little pink nose that was peeking out of the burrow.
“Oh!” she exclaimed, “What a perfect little nose you have!” The pink nose wiggled a reply. Annie became as still as she possibly could and held the carrot as far away from her body as possible. Slowly, ever so slowly, two black eyes appeared behind the nose. Annie looked at the rabbit and the rabbit looked at Annie…not quite sure if it could really trust the little girl. Suddenly Annie had to sneeze. She closed her eyes and wrinkled her nose and tried to stop the sneeze from coming, but it came anyway. “Aaaaachooooo!” When Annie opened her eyes, the rabbit was gone. Frustrated, Annie broke off another piece of the carrot and dropped it into the burrow. “Tomorrow,” she whispered, “I’ll visit again.” And stomped into the house.
The next morning Granny made french toast for breakfast and Annie smothered her plate of french toast with homemade raspberry syrup. While eating her breakfast, sitting under the China Cup Collection, Annie pondered the rabbits. She wondered if they had eaten their breakfast too, if they had been cold during the freezing winter night. Most of all she wondered if the rabbits would eventually learn to trust her. “Granny,” Annie asked, “Will the rabbits let me feed them today?” Granny reached into the refrigerator for yet another carrot. “If you are quiet and still then the rabbits will no longer be afraid of you, and they will eat your carrots.” Annie took the carrot and frowned. “But I have been quiet and still, and the rabbits are still afraid of me…..” Granny smiled at Annie’s frustrations, “You’ve forgotten the most important thing of all, you need to give the rabbits time to trust you, you need to be very patient.” With a sigh, Annie opened the door and tip-toed out to the rabbit burrow by the old wooden shed.
Every morning of her visit at Granny’s house, Annie would take a carrot from the bag in the refrigerator and go out and feed the rabbits. And every morning the rabbits would inch closer and closer only to be frightened away at the last second. Finally the last day of Annie’s visit had come; her family had arrived to take Annie home. There was only one small carrot left in the bag. Granny took the carrot out of the bag. “Here,” she said as she handed the last carrot to Annie. “Why don’t you feed the rabbits the last carrot.” Annie took the last carrot and asked, “Do you think today will be the day the rabbits eat the carrot from my hand?” “Have you been patient?” asked Granny, with a twinkle in her eye. Annie looked at her grandmother and smiled, “Yes!” she beamed, “I have been very patient!”
Annie tip-toed out to the shed, to where the rabbit burrow was, and laid down on the snow. “Please little rabbit,” she whispered softly into the burrow with her eyes closed, “Please come out to eat the carrot today.” Softly Annie started to sing, her eyes still closed. She sang every song she knew… (except for Little Bunny Foo-Foo), some of them she even sang twice in a row! In the middle of “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” Annie felt a tug on the carrot. Slowly and quietly she opened her eyes… Annie looked towards her hand and saw two beautiful little brown rabbits eating the carrot! “I knew you would come today!” she whispered to the rabbits. The rabbits only looked at her and continued to munch on the little carrot. Annie grinned and looked back at the house where her family was watching through the bay window. Granny grinned back at Annie…
……. And at the two little brown rabbits.
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