BUNNY LEARNS TO BE BOLDER Bunny learns to be bolder.
Look,
I've got another one!
Kara shouts excitedly as she holds up Bunny's fishing net.
Bunny peers into the slime-covered net.
A tiny tadpole wriggles inside.
Quick,
Bunny!
Take the tadpole out of the net and put him in the bucket!
She squeals.
Bunny scoops the tadpole into the bucket,
Trying hard to avoid the creepy river slime.
It's impossible!
The slime is everywhere!
Bunny sighs and wipes his dirty paws on a patch of grass.
I'm really good at catching tadpoles,
Hey,
Bunny?
Kara boasts.
I'm going to see how many I can catch in one go!
She shouts over her shoulder as she runs back to the water.
Bunny wistfully watches the tadpoles in the bucket.
They flutter together in little clumps.
I wish I could have a turn to catch a few tadpoles too,
He thinks to himself.
But Bunny is too scared to say this out loud to Kara.
What if Kara gets cross?
Bunny,
Come and see!
I think I caught two together this time,
Kara hoots.
Bunny's ears drop.
Oh no!
Now I have to touch the creepy slime again.
Hurry,
Bunny!
Get them into the bucket before they escape!
Kara jumps up and down with excitement.
Bunny wishes he had the courage to say,
I don't want to,
But the words get stuck in his throat.
Instead he says,
I,
Um,
I,
Oh,
Okay.
He gingerly sweeps the two tadpoles out of the net and into the bucket.
He wipes his paws on the grass once more.
That was so much fun,
Kara shrieks.
I'm going to do it again.
I'm going to fill our bucket with tadpoles.
She skips back to the river.
Bunny gently swirls one of his paws in the bucket.
The tadpoles flutter about.
Then they settle around his paw and start sucking at his fur.
That tickles!
He giggles softly.
I wonder when we're going to put you back in the river,
Bunny asks the tadpoles.
Oh,
I don't want to let them go.
We are taking them home with us,
Kara says right behind him.
Bunny wasn't expecting her there.
He jerks his paw out of the water and splashes all over himself.
One of the tadpoles almost gets sloshed out of the bucket.
But what will we do with these tadpoles at home?
Won't their frog parents be looking for them?
Bunny asks.
I don't know.
I suppose I just want to look at them,
She answers.
Here's another one.
Quick,
Help me add it to the bucket.
Bunny shudders as he frees another tadpole from the slimy net and adds it to the bucket.
Kara runs off to catch more.
Bunny wipes his paws again and plops down next to the bucket.
I don't want to take these poor tadpoles home.
I just don't think it's right,
He says softly to himself.
What's wrong,
Bunny?
A friendly voice asks behind him.
Bunny looks up into a tree to find Fairy Poppy sitting on a branch.
I'm just a little sad,
That's all,
Bunny says with a shrug.
That's not good.
Why don't you tell me all about it?
I want to free the tadpoles that Kara caught,
But she wants to take them home with us.
Bunny's chin starts to quiver a little bit.
I just don't think they belong with us.
They belong in the river.
Have you told Kara how you feel?
Poppy asks softly.
Um,
No,
I haven't.
I'm scared she might get cross with me.
What if she doesn't want to be my friend anymore?
Oh,
Bunny,
You need to be a bit bolder,
Exclaims Poppy.
Friends don't stop being friends because they have different opinions.
And you don't have to always give Kara her way.
Sometimes she needs to give you your way.
How do I get her to do that?
Bunny asks puzzled.
By telling her what it is that you want,
Laughs Poppy.
Right now Kara gets to say what she wants to do all of the time.
Am I right?
She asks.
Pretty much,
Bunny blushes.
But I don't know how to ask for what I want.
If I think about what I want,
I always start worrying about hurting Kara's feelings.
Or the words get stuck in my throat.
Or I get scared that Kara wouldn't want to be my friend anymore.
It's alright to worry about these things.
It means that you are a caring friend.
But you also have to be kind to yourself.
What you want is just as important as giving Kara what she wants.
But if we want different things,
How do we know who gets to do what they want?
Sometimes you will get to do what you want.
And sometimes it should be Kara,
Poppy replies.
And how will I know when it's right to ask for what I want and when to go along with what she wants?
He frowns.
Well,
You need to ask yourself this question.
Can any harm come from going with what my friend wants?
Our friends don't always know what is right.
Sometimes we need to remind them.
If Kara wants to take the tadpoles home,
It might not be the best thing for the tadpoles.
You need to remind her of that.
For anything else,
It is alright to sometimes go with what our friend wants.
But not all the time,
Poppy says with a wink.
So how do I tell someone what I want and get them to listen to me?
Bunny asks shyly.
Poppy smiles.
You need to be firm.
You also need to be very calm.
Take a deep breath or two to steady yourself.
And it helps to stand tall.
Push your shoulders back.
That's it.
Right,
Now you calmly and firmly say what you want.
It helps to practice this.
Would you like to try it on me?
Yes,
Please.
I think it would help me to see how it could work.
Bunny agrees.
Let's pretend that I am Kara.
Okay.
Bunny takes a deep breath.
He squares his shoulders and stands tall.
Then he says,
Kara,
I want us to put the tadpoles back in the river.
Think about how their parents will miss them if we take them away.
Perfect,
Smiles Poppy.
Now it's time to try on Kara.
Poppy hands Bunny a small,
Smooth stone.
You can hold on to my lucky stone for a bit of extra courage.
Keep it with you to remind yourself to be bolder.
Before Bunny can thank her,
Poppy disappears into the closest tree.
He holds on tightly to the lucky stone as Kara comes rushing towards him with a dripping,
Slimy net.
I think I have three in there this time,
She yelps.
It's my best catch yet.
Bunny breathes deeply and smiles.
He stands a little bit taller.
Why don't I hold the net for you so you can put the tadpoles in the bucket?
Then you can see if you really caught three tadpoles.
To his big surprise,
Kara hands him the net.
She starts tugging at the slimy net.
Eww,
This is really nasty,
Laughs Kara.
Yes,
I did catch three.
She whoops before wiping her slimy paws on the grass.
Bunny takes another deep breath.
Um,
Kara,
I want us to put the tadpoles back into the river before we go home.
Just think about how their parents will miss them if we take them away from here.
He squeezes his eyes shut and holds his breath.
Kara is silent.
After what feels like forever,
He peeks through one eye to see what she is doing.
Kara looks puzzled.
She stares at the tadpoles fluttering about in the bucket.
You know what,
Bunny?
You are right.
I don't know what we would do with them at home anyway.
Will you help me throw them back in the river?
Of course.
Bunny grins happily.
As he helps Kara with the bucket of tadpoles,
He sees Poppy fly off into the forest.
He is almost certain that he can see her turn and wink at him before she disappears.
