Waiting for Rabbits

One hot summer day long ago, a farmer was hard at work tending his crops. His muscles ached and his back was sore. But he had to keep working because he had to support his family.Perhaps a short break wouldn’t hurt, he thought. He drank some water from the stream running by the side of the field. Much better! He thought as he sat down to catch his breath.Suddenly, out of the corner of his eye, he saw a streak of white. He heard a loud thud. He turned quickly to see what had happened. There, by the tree stump across the stream, was a brown and white rabbit lying on its side.The farmer waded through the stream to the tree stump. He saw that the rabbit had run into the tree stump and died.The farmer was excited—here was a free meal for his family!He wrapped the rabbit in his shirt and headed home.That night, his wife cleaned and cooked the rabbit. It was a delicious dinner! Everyone went to bed happy and full.The farmer woke up the next morning before dawn, as he always did.But this time, as he was putting on his clothes, he realized something.He did not actually have to work so hard! Instead of farming all day, he could just sit by the tree stump and wait for rabbits. What a wonderful plan! Free food!That day, he did not tend his crops. He did not sweat and strain under the hot sun. Instead, he sat by the tree stump. He whistled for rabbits, but none came. He yawned. He napped. He wondered what kind of tree the stump had been. Had chickens ever bumped into it? He liked to eatchicken. He waited some more. Nothing happened. But he wasn’t worried. He knew a rabbit had to run into the tree stump very soon. It was overdue!When he returned home, his wife asked when he would return to his work on the farm. “I’m done with all that,” he told her. “The stump is where I belong.”“I might agree with you there,” said his wife, frowning. “Perhaps you ought to sleep at the stump too.” Then she stomped off.The farmer was happy his wife was so agreeable. She thought he belonged at the stump too!He returned to the stump that night. He fell asleep and dreamed of rabbits hurling themselves at the stump. If only the rabbits would make themselves into rabbit stew or barbecue. That would be the best!However, when he awakened there were no rabbits to be found. This continued for weeks. He tried different methods to get rabbits to run into the stump. He made a sign that said, “This way!” It had a big arrow on it.Nothing. He pretended to be a rabbit and hopped over to the stump. He threw himself against the stump and bumped his knee. Still, no rabbits hopped into the stump.“Stupid rabbits!” he complained to himself. “Why don’t they run into the stump like they used to do?” He almost lost hope. Then he remembered how tiring it was to tend the crops. He didn’t like working that hard. He got so sweaty! The memory helped convince him that rabbits would run into the stump and give him a free dinner. He wasn’t about to give up his dream!The farmer’s fields became overgrown with weeds because he stopped caring for them. He wouldn’t even go home and see his family because he was afraid to leave the stump. He worried that a rabbit would bump into it while he was gone.In the end, no more rabbits bumped into the stump. The farmer’s crops died, so he had no produce to sell at the market. He had no money, just one very fine stump. He became the laughingstock of the village because he relied on luck instead of hard work to feed his family.His wife sold the farm, so she could follow her dream. She and the children opened a small restaurant. Rabbit was never on the menu.