Year of the Rabbit
Happy Lunar New Year! I read this morning that unlike last year’s tiger energy, this year’s rabbit embodies relaxation, quietness, and contemplation which speaks to me right now. Yes to all that the rabbit has to teach us!
As a kid, I probably had a dozen rabbits. I couldn’t have a cat or a dog because my mom was allergic, so my dad let me have any other pet I wanted. Within my elementary school years, I had fish, a couple birds, a frog, a turtle, a duck, and rabbits. Lots and lots of rabbits.
We started off with one, and then I asked for another, and of course, they multiplied. While I don’t remember the conversations, I’m sure that my parents talked to me about sex and reproductive systems during the years that I kept rabbits.
I have one memory of my dad discovering a pregnant rabbit, taking it out of the cage, and letting it live freely in the garage. He said that she needed to find a warm place to have her babies. Days later, 2 or 3 tiny rabbits emerged from the corner of the garage. There’s a photo of my brother, probably 4 years old, squatting with one.
Normally my rabbits lived in a wooden and mesh cage, built by my dad and kept in our backyard. Each day, I filled their water bowls and my brother fed them lettuce. We loved to watch them lick from the fat globe of salt we hung in the corners of their cages.
And that was basically the extent of having rabbits. We just watched them live their seemingly chill, innocent and carefree lives. It was wonderful to care for them. I loved them, they didn’t seem to notice me, and it was all fine.
I realize now that caring for rabbits also taught me about death. Stray dogs got into our yard one night. At that time we had two rabbits - Honey and Bunny. My parents described what happened as a massacre. My dad cleaned the yard before we got up that morning.
When we had too many rabbits to feed and cage, we made an outing to Griffith Park - the park in LA where the Hollywood sign stands over the city - and released a few at a time. One evening, after letting rabbits go, I heard my dad say, “coyote food” to my mom, and watched them both giggle. I understood the joke and didn’t like it.
Later in my rabbit-loving life, my grandmother came to visit. She did not understand rabbits as pets. In her country-mind, rabbits were food, so she picked a couple from their cage and made stew while I napped. She disclosed what she’d done at dinner. My parents were equally shocked as they were amused. I was a hard no on dinner that night.
Decades later, here I am holding space for rabbits, and reproductive systems, and birth, and work, and death and life.
Thanks for reading. I’m so grateful for your support.
Upcoming
Join my friend, Amy Wright Glenn’s year-long Self-Care Support Circle - a restorative space for folks doing support work or anyone wanting to try a guided support practice. Participants meet monthly. Donation based. Starts Saturday, Jan 28th
Call the Black Birth Joyline which features 2 minute clips from The Birthright Podcast, as a reminder that joy can exist in Black birth. It's time to get your joy! You can call (844)5 GET-JOY and press 1 to 6 to listen to the audio clips or text "GETJOY" to that number to receive the clips via text. The audio is updated weekly and the JoyLine will run until Feb. 1, 2023.
I’ll be teaching the Holding Space for Pregnancy Loss Advanced Course this spring for the Institute for the Study of Birth Breath and Death. Dates are coming soon. Receive a certificate of completion and 8 hours of CEUs.
Companioning Clients Through Pregnancy Loss - a self-paced, pre-recorded course that I teach in collaboration with The Educated Birth will be available for purchase soon. I’m really proud of this one. Stay tuned for details!
I’m offering 1:1 childbirth education, virtually, to expectant parents. Email me to schedule.
More offerings and events are here on my website. Be in touch!