I’m writing this in tribute to a brave individual, who ventured too far from those he could trust and reckoned too highly on his own abilities. Let us all read and learn from his tragedy. This happened yesterday, in my own front yard.
THE SAD SONG OF BUBBLES WHITE SCHMELTZ
by Marian Allen
He was only a little white rabbit
With eyes of a delicate red.
He broke with his safety and habit
And now he is probably dead.
His mistress obeyed not her father
Who, when she ignored Bubbles’ needs
Because they were just too much bother,
Turned Bubbles out into the weeds.
At first, Bubbles stayed on the Schmeltz grounds
Enjoying his freedom at home
And played with the Schmeltz cats and Schmeltz hounds
But then he decided to roam.
So Bubbles came up to the Allens’
Where things were not safe and not sweet,
Where cats have sharp teeth and long talons
And dogs think a rabbit is meat.
In spite of the Allens’ best trying,
The DOG was seen, mouth full of white.
Poor Bubbles was probably dying
And gently went to that good night.
But let us not call Bubbles “hero”.
He went where he oughtn’t to go.
The score is DOG-one, BUBBLES-zero
Which I am down-hearted to know.
Oh, heed me, thou little white rabbits!
Remember poor Bubbles, too free!
Stray not from thy homes and thy habits
Lest this fate should happen to THEE!
Mom and I are pretending that Joe carried Bubbles into the woods and released him, and he went home. Other people’s dogs bring their kills to their Mistresses for praise, in which case I might have been able to save a wounded rabbit or at least deliver the remains for burial, but NO, Joe wasn’t about to answer my calls. He flat ignored me. I am not best pleased with him. See if I share my next kill with him!
WRITING PROMPT: Did your main character have a pet as a child? Or a child as a pet?
MA
Jim Hilton
March 16, 2011 at 10:57amA nicely-done elegy for an innocent in a strange land. Bubbles, we hardly knew ye.
Helen Ginger
March 16, 2011 at 2:48pmMy protag does not have a pet. As a child, though, I hatched baby chicks and kept them as pets.
Marian Allen
March 16, 2011 at 4:24pmOh, how neat! Were they hens? Did you eat the eggs? Were they indoor pets? I have a friend who had a rooster who followed her around the house like a pup!
Bob Sanchez
March 16, 2011 at 3:02pmMarian, that is funny, touching, and very well done. My compliments!
Marian Allen
March 16, 2011 at 4:25pmThanks, Bob. I’m seriously angry with the dog for not bringing the rabbit to me when I called him. Not a good dog. NOT!
Gail Baugniet
March 16, 2011 at 3:11pmLove your poem even though it may have a sad ending, though the story might have a happy ending:
When I lived in Minnesota, we had two dogs, a white cat, and several dwarf rabbits. I was in the back yard playing with one rabbit and the two dogs when the rabbit sprinted away from me. The older female dog chased into the bushes after the rabbit, grabbed it in its mouth, and returned it to me, unharmed!
I hope your bunny returns also.
Marian Allen
March 16, 2011 at 4:26pmGail, I wouldn’t be so upset with the dog if it were my own rabbit, but it belonged to one of the kids in the neighborhood. Her father told her he’d turn the rabbit out if she didn’t take proper care of it, and she didn’t, and he did. Not my fault it met an untimely end, but I feel bad about it anyway. 🙁
Holly Jahangiri
March 16, 2011 at 7:29pmMy condolences on your loss. Bubbles appears to have been a LOVELY rabbit.
But aside from the personal tragedy, you know what I find amazing about this?
– Rabbit’s good eatin’, no doubt about it. It’s also a very healthy meat. My grandmother used to make a wonderful rabbit in white wine sauce she dubbed “Jugged Hare.” I wish I had that recipe! (There may be similar recipes – I haven’t really searched, because I know she made some alterations of her own that she didn’t write down or share, when she was experimenting with low sodium cooking for my grandfather, back before anyone much cared about sodium content in food. It was the one low, low, LOW sodium dish we ALL loved.)
– Rabbits are cute. Just plain cute. Ever met an ugly rabbit? I haven’t. Even the ugliest of rabbits are, well, so ugly they’re cute.
– Unlike dogs and cats and horses, we can culturally accept rabbits as both food and pets.
– Given all of the above, how on earth can you seriously be angry with the dog for anything other than failure to obey you?
Marian Allen
March 16, 2011 at 8:08pmHolly, that’s exactly right–I was angry with the dog for not obeying me. When the rabbit ran, it was all over for it. I can’t really blame the dog for acting like a dog.
And did you know that rabbits are NOT rodents, like squirrels? Rabbits are lagomorphs.
Holly Jahangiri
March 16, 2011 at 7:30pmP.S. Yes, I saw that Bubbles wasn’t your rabbit. That does make it even harder, but as you said – NOT your fault. Dog did what dogs do.
MARIAN ALLEN · Not Bugs
March 17, 2011 at 9:14am[…] Subscribe to feed ‹ The Sad Song of Bubbles White Schmeltz […]
Patricia Stoltey
March 17, 2011 at 11:05amAwww. That’s so sad. Poor Bubbles.
Marian Allen
March 17, 2011 at 9:55pmI know, Pat–as if it wasn’t bad enough he had to endure being named Bubbles, right?
Nutschell Windsor
March 17, 2011 at 7:22pmOh what a sad (yet lovely) poem. I feel bad for bubbles–mostly because I had a pet rabbit when I was young. They really are beautiful (albeit foolish) little creatures.
Marian Allen
March 17, 2011 at 9:58pmI had a pet rabbit when I was young, too. I felt so bad for the little girl Bubbles belonged to. I told her mother I’d buy her another rabbit, not that another rabbit could take the place of that one. Her mother said no. The rabbit was loose in the first place because the girl wasn’t taking care of him, so I suppose Mrs. Schmeltz didn’t want to replace him with another rabbit the girl might not take care of.
MARIAN ALLEN
March 22, 2011 at 9:49am[…] Meanwhile, I’m posting at Fatal Foodies today. I’m still going on about that rabbit. […]