rabbit

by corinne delmonico

i am a citizen of the new world i get junk mail including lots of calendars i got a calendar about saving animals there were pictures of cute cats and dogs and pigs and whales and chimps and gorillas and a lemur with big sad eyes looking into the depths of your soul and … a rabbit and my first thought was a rabbit! a flipping rabbit! rabbits are not exactly an endangered species! “The world's domesticated rabbit population is estimated at 709 million. however, there are many different species of wild rabbits that live throughout the world. since rabbits have been introduced to many habitats to which they are not native, it would be very difficult, to estimate the wild population. “ i guess! but then i thought what difference does it make? a rabbit is just a living creature that wants to live does a rabbit know that there are a trilion other rabbits in the world? as opposed to an albigensian lemur of which there are only 15 left in the forest in madagascar? maybe it does maybe a rabbit knows it can find fellow bunnies wherever it goes in the world whereas the albigensian lemur knows it better not go very far or it will never find a friend but again, maybe not does a rabbit know it is a “rabbit”? do cats and dogs know they are “cats” and “dogs” ? as opposed to just being creatures that you might hang with or ignore or fight or eat as the situation calls for? do humans know they are “humans”? a human can have a dog for his best friend and happily kill other humans, no? but humans love the idea of different creatures getting along make a video or a gif of a cat getting along with a monkey, or an octopus being pals with a porcupine, or an elephant snuggling with a piranha, and put it on line and you will get 10 or 20 million likes as opposed to a poem which might get 1 or 2 likes from your mom or your best friend if you are lucky don’t forget, september 23 is international rabbit day just some thoughts on a gray morning