As the snow melted and winter came to an end, the most exciting time of the year was just around the corner. For bunnies who wanted to become Easter Bunnies, Easter was the most important celebration of all. They had a lot to learn leading up to the big day.
A few weeks before Easter weekend, bunny families started preparations so that everything would go well on Easter Sunday and every child would have a colorful, well-hidden egg to find in the garden and put in their Easter baskets.
This was also the case in Billy the Bunny’s family. All his relatives, including his aunts and uncles, cousins, and siblings, got together to discuss the distribution of tasks.
Billy was the youngest of 12 and had not yet been allowed to hide Easter eggs. His siblings had already attended the bunny school where Easter lessons were given. They had all received their assignments and had been practicing diligently for weeks in order to be ready for the most important day of the year.
Every year, young bunnies came from all over the area to register at the bunny school and be trained as Easter Bunnies. This year, Billy was finally old enough to be one of them. He was eager to join but secretly hoped it wouldn’t be too difficult.
Billy’s parents liked the idea of him joining the tradition of becoming an Easter Bunny and encouraged their son.
“Practice makes perfect, Billy! The first step is always difficult,” said Billy’s dad.
So Billy enrolled at the school. The experienced Easter Bunnies taught the young bunnies how to collect eggs from the chickens and how to carefully handle them so they don’t break. The strongest, most experienced and skillful bunnies were chosen for this important task.
Then it was time for painting lessons.
“Not so easy!” Billy noted.
It takes a steady paw to paint a beautiful pattern on an egg. For this, the calmest and most creative bunnies were put to work.
Next, all the students practiced carrying the eggs. This required the bunnies to be nimble, attentive and very persistent. They learned that the roads to the Easter nests were often very long and bumpy. Not to mention they would be carrying a large basket or pushing a wheelbarrow full of delicate eggs. A sense of direction was very important in order to find all the nests.
It was not an easy job, but all the bunnies were very eager to learn the procedures accurately. Most bunnies enjoyed the sports lessons with races, balancing and jumping exercises and other tests of physical ability.
Billy really enjoyed the theory lessons, but sometimes he forgot to really listen. While the others practiced, he daydreamed.
Finally, the big day arrived and each new Easter Bunny was handed a basket full of eggs to carry and distribute. They were divided into small groups and assigned different directions.
Suddenly Billy was very worried. He didn’t know where he was supposed to go. He hadn’t paid attention in class and he hadn’t been the most diligent with his athletic training either.
“Oh, I’ll just run after the others!” Billy thought.
When the oldest Easter Bunny gave the start signal and everyone dashed off, Billy went towards the green meadows, fields and forests in the direction of the villages and towns where the children lived.
But Billy had not practiced enough and the other bunnies quickly outpaced him. Tired and far behind the others, Billy reached a meadow where horses were grazing. He asked the horses, “Do you happen to know where the Easter nests are for the children?”
“There, maybe?” one said, pointing to a molehill and continuing to graze.
Billy wasn’t sure but he put a red, shiny egg on the molehill just in case and kept walking. Along the way, he spotted a small pile of leaves and twigs. It looked like a nest to him so Billy placed an egg there too and kept going.
Then he ran past a hedge where slowly sprouting green buds revealed a nest in the branches. He placed another a colorful egg in this nest. Using his unique system, he spread all the pretty Easter eggs he had been assigned.
Then he found a garden and discovered a beautiful green nest made of grass under a tree.
“Yikes!” Billy thought as he suddenly remembered that this was exactly what a real Easter nest looked like. The old Easter Bunny had shown one just like it several times in class. He was finally sitting next to the right nest but now he was out of Easter eggs.
Just then, a mole crawled up beside him pushing a shiny red egg. He said angrily, “Did you put this egg on the air hole to my molehill?” He ran back to his burrow.
Then a pair of mice came along. They were also rolling a colorful egg. “What is this all about? We don’t need an egg in front of our burrow,” one of the mice scolded Billy.
A hedgehog also came to Billy and brought back a shiny Easter egg that he seemed to have lost along the way.
Now a titmouse flew over and chirped, “I need my nest for the eggs I’m about to lay. Take your colorful egg back and find your own nest!”
“Thank you!” shouted Billy after each of the animals, beaming with joy. Now he had all his eggs back to distribute into the correct nests. Next year, he would not let this happen again.
“Tomorrow morning the kids will find my Easter eggs and I’m sure they’ll be very happy,” he thought.
Billy was very relieved it had worked out alright and went to tell his older siblings and parents about his adventures. Attending Easter training was definitely worth it, they all concluded. Satisfied with himself, Billy the Little Easter Bunny happily went home with his family.
