Bunny love...

I was up way before the crack of dawn, full of joys at the bathroom guys returning and putting the finishing touches to our ensuite.  They didn't arrive till gone 3pm, without the main man who is off ill.  Great!

David went to pop into town and the central display in the car delivered a message saying problem with suspension, do not drive.  Great!

Alan was due to go swimming at 1pm but there was a problem with the chlorine (the guy was only out servicing it yesterday and gave it a clean bill of health) so he couldn't go swimming.  Great!

In the midst of all this chaos, the postman delivered this little ceramic rabbit that my friend Fiona sculpted for me before she headed back to New Zealand on Sunday.  

She's so beautiful and holding her in my hand knowing that Fiona's hands had created her so lovingly, made my day.  She has a little brass ring on her back so she can be hung up.  I just need to find a place to hang her so she will be seen.  

A little bunny, hands in her little cardigan pocket, she is a welcome addition to other pieces Fiona has made for me over the years and will be cherished.  

Fiona's work often features rabbits and it reminds me of when we were children and I stayed with her and her mum and dad and sister in their house at Broughty-Ferry one summer.  I would have been around 8 and Fiona around 10.  She had a black and white rabbit called Patchy and she was devoted to her.   

We used to go to her hutch first thing every morning, refill her water bottle, feed her then Fiona would spend ages holding and cuddling her.  Patchy was the first rabbit I ever held and instilled in me a life long love of these beautiful creatures.  

I have so many wonderful memories of Fiona and I together as children but an abiding one is her holding a wild rabbit s it breathed its last.

My uncle's little dog Jet (who we adored) had just chased and caught it.  Fiona managed to get the baby rabbit from the dog but it was clear it wasn't long for this world, about to die of fright more than anything else. 

I remember so clearly, her sitting cross legged on the ground, the bunny lying in her left hand as she gently caressed it with her right, running her fingers long its ears, crying her eyes out as she spoke quietly to it.  Gentle sobs between her apologies on Jet's behalf..."I'm so sorry, he didn't mean to hurt you, he was just playing.  I'm so sorry....so sorry"

We must have sat there for over an hour, long after the poor rabbit had passed.  The sun on our hair and little Jet, my uncle's dog, lying beside us wondering what on earth was going on and why his prize had been taken from him.  Her grief so raw.  

We dug a little hole in the grass verge with our bare hands and the little bunny was carefully laid to rest.  

The tenderness I see in her work, I first witnessed that day.  

Ahem!  Where was I (down a rabbit hole I think!) So, update on the three (mini) disasters that I mentioned above....

The bathroom guys have removed the bath, and the toilet in preparation for the flooring guys coming tomorrow.  They've also put in the new pipes for the larger radiator that's on order.  Their final word as they left was to keep chasing M as he who shouts the loudest....so much for the work being completed by the weekend!

A lovely man from Range Rover Roadside Assistance came to the house to look at the car and announced he could fix the problem.  And he did!  Yay!  (Thank heavens as the first the garage could look at it was a week on Friday!)  One problem effectively dealt with.

After a phone call to the pool people, the engineer will be here at midday tomorrow to fix the problem. Woo hoo!

Oh well, as someone once said, two out of three ain't bad!  

P.S. Thank you for all my lovely birthday wishes yesterday.  I will get around to replying properly :-) xx