The Easter Bunny

The first hint of dawn crept across the empty park.  It illuminated a man on a bench. A man whose soul was as empty as the bottle lying next to him.  He had died inside on Friday.  Saturday was a lost day and now he watched as the first rays of the morning did battle with the darkness in the sky and in his heart.

The night was losing.  It was the first literal ray of hope he had had since Friday.

The man watched a bunny hop across the field in front of him.  “The Easter Bunny, ” he scoffed.  “Rabbits don’t lay eggs.”  The rabbit hopped away, oblivious to the man’s disbelief.

He had once believed. In his career. His friends.  His bosses. The company he had worked for.  But a bean counter had put an end to all that. His career ended on Friday with a pink slip.  And with it, went the man’s belief.

A belief that was built on a foundation of sand.

The rabbit hopped back over to the man and looked up at him.  The man opened an eye and said, “What do you want?

“Nothing,” said the rabbit, “except for you to believe.”

The man nearly peed his pants.  He looked down at the bottle, slapped his face.  Did a bunny rabbit just talk to him?  Was it the alcohol that was desperately trying to break down in his body that was still messing with his head?

“Did  you just talk to me?”  The man couldn’t believed he just talked to a rabbit.  Although he loved the film “Harvey” with Jimmy Stewart, it was just that: A movie.

“Yes,” said the rabbit. “A part of you died Friday.  But today, a better you will rise.”

The man looked around. Great, a talking rabbit was talking to him in a park.  He looked for his cell phone.  What was the number for the nut house again?

The rabbit continued, “You’ve been given a great gift when you were let go.  You can reinvent yourself.  You can rebuild.  But rebuild on a stronger foundation. A foundation built on these stones: Forgiveness. Love. Hard Work.”

“Forgiveness?  Of those #$%#$ who laid me off?”  the man spat.  He had had a promising career in middle management and had done everything right. And in the end, it had meant nothing.

“Job number one, my friend.  You can’t move forward with hate in your heart.  If you can overcome the struggle between your ears, you can succeed.  Your anger is like an anchor on your potential. ”

The man looked down at the empty bottle again. The rabbit continued, “Use your talents.  Just because your company didn’t believe in you, doesn’t mean others don’t.  And remember, you’re not alone.  Thousands of Americans are going through what you are.  It’s not personal. It’s just business.”

“If that’s business, then I don’t want to do business.” the man stared off at the lake in the distance, his eyes watering again.

“Exactly,” said the rabbit. “Do things differently.  Think about the long term.  Don’t chase an easy buck.  Belief is easy to say, harder to do.  That’s where the hard work comes in. Give back to others.  Give back to others and you’ll receive all you’ll need. Make a difference.  The old you died on Friday. And better you has risen today.  ”

The sun won the battle over the darkness.  It was Easter Sunday and bells at the local Cathedral began to mark the sunrise.  The man woke up on the bench and pushed the bottle aside.  That had been a bizarre dream. He threw the bottle into the trash can — For good.

He sat up, wiped the sleep from his eyes and noticed a small basket sitting next to him.  Three brightly colored eggs with the words “Forgiveness,” “Love” and “Hard Work” sat in the basket’s green grass.

The man looked up and looked into the distance.  A small rabbit hopped off toward the lake.  He dusted himself off, rose and headed to the Cathedral.