Esther Bunny goes West

Esther Bunny did take this trip some months ago, but she needed her mom’s help to write about her adventures so it was a little delayed. Easter bunnies like to travel at Easter time, so this is when Esther Bunny took her big trip. She had to remind everyone that she met that she is not the Easter Bunny but Esther Bunny.

There was lots of planning before she and her mom could go West. Her mom had not travelled by plane in quite a few years and Esther Bunny never had. (How did she get from her original home in China to Canada is a good question, but that would have to be another story.)

So being an organized bunny like her mom, Esther knew exactly what she had to pack to take with her. She made sure to include her pink bandana and her cowboy hat (also pink) with the special elastic that goes under her chin to keep the hat from blowing away in a stiff breeze.

She made sure that her mom got a window seat on the plane. Esther Bunny is so small that she does not need her own seat. She fits quite easily in the seat pocket when she needs to.

She did want to see what was going on outside at the airport, so her mom had to hold her up for a better view. Everyone looked to be very busy - there were people and vehicles and all sizes of airplanes and to a small stuffed bunny, they all looked to be very large. How did they ever get off the ground?

Esther Bunny wanted to watch the luggage being loaded into the airplane. Yes, that was her mom’s blue suitcase and her own little pink one disappearing into the cargo hold. She could also watch the food trolleys being loaded. She knew what they were by the sign on them - food - showing that even small bunnies can read well.

At first Esther Bunny thought that when the airplane went up she would have to flap her ears really fast to help get the plane off the ground. Her mom reassured her that this was not really needed. So how does the plane get off the ground, thought Esther Bunny.

She easily got settled in her seat pocket - the preferred seating for a small stuffed bunny. Before doing this and being a friendly little bunny, she waved to her seat mates. Was that a small teddy bear 3 seats over waving back?

She did not have long to wait before the plane lifted off from the runway. As it turned out, she did want to flap her ears a bit as the plane gained altitude and Esther Bunny’s ears popped. They were soon travelling through some light fluffy clouds. Was that the sun on the other side? I guess the clouds were too thick for the sun to shine through them, thought Esther Bunny.

When it was finally time to eat, Esther Bunny waited patiently for her special order - a small bunny sized salad. A plastic bib was provided which Esther was told she could keep as a souvenir of her trip. She had asked for some ranch dressing with her salad - she thought that was most appropriate when flying West.

Esther Bunny liked looking out the window and seeing the clouds and sometimes fields and lakes and even some snow a long way below. There was too much to see and think about and definitely no time for napping - a favourite bunny past time.

Not too long after finishing her salad and wiping her somewhat sticky paws on her napkin, Esther Bunny was interrupted from her gazing out the window. One of the flight attendants came over to where Esther Bunny was sitting with her mom. With gentle inquiries as to whether she was really Esther Bunny, she was asked to go up to the airplane cockpit for a specially arranged visit.

The young flight attendant was quite eager to escort Esther Bunny to the cockpit to give her a special introduction to the airplane. Esther Bunny was very interested in learning more about the plane.

She could not believe all the lights and buttons and other instruments. She could not believe that the two pilots were sitting back enjoying their coffee from a Tim Horton’s mug. Esther was given a small mug of hot chocolate. She was told that she could keep the mug as a souvenir of her visit.

Esther had lots of questions for the two pilots. How do you know what button and flap to push when? How do you know what direction you are going in? And especially important - what makes the airplane wings flap?

There was lots of time to have answers to all her questions. When she was escorted back to her seat and her seat pocket, Esther Bunny was quite overwhelmed by all that she had seen and learned. She thought it was probably a good time to have a nap. It looked like her mom was going to do the same.

The time passed very quickly and before too long, the captain came on to announce that they were starting their descent to the Vancouver airport. Esther Bunny could feel her ears pop again.

The plane came down not too quickly through a lot of clouds. Was that the ocean over there? It was certainly larger than any lake she had seen. Once the plane had landed and was moving towards the terminal building, the captain announced the local weather and time. Was it only that time? What time was it anyway? She watched her mom adjust her watch. This was much too complicated for Esther Bunny to figure out.

As the plane moved towards their gate at the terminal building her mom tucked Esther Bunny into her small blue carry on bag. Esther Bunny did not know what was happening until some time later and she was able to hop out of the small bag. She was finally in Vancouver at the house where Vicki’s sister Kathi lived with her husband and Dennis the Bear.

It was the next morning before Esther Bunny had a proper chance to talk with Dennis the Bear. They had lots to talk about together but they would have plenty of time because her mom’s visit was going to last more than one week.

She was very interested to go and meet Ruthie Rabbit - a cousin to the Ruthie Rabbit living in Ottawa. They had a long talk together which was made even longer because of the fact that Ruthie kept on falling asleep. A stuffed bunny that is really a pyjama bag is allowed to do that.

One afternoon Dennis the Bear took Esther Bunny down to see the creek at the back of the property. It was only a short hop for Esther Bunny. She began to look around but she did not see any fish. Dennis had stories to tell about salmon being sent on their way down the creek or was it up the creek?

The visit with Dennis the Bear passed quite quickly. Dennis had lots of stories to tell especially one about his trip to the Calgary Stampede. Esther Bunny had stories to tell as well. She had several trips to Toronto with her mom and she even met Santa.

As the time to go back home again was approaching, her mom started to pack her suitcase. Esther Bunny was able to pack her little pink suitcase all by herself. When it was time to leave for the airport, Esther Bunny hopped into her place in her mom’s blue carry on bag.

She would now have some new adventures to share with her stuffed animals friends at home. She liked travelling with her mom and hoped that she could do it again soon.

She hoped that her mom would remember the words from Esther Bunny’s first story. “Now my mom does like to take me travelling with her. She says that I am good company and no trouble at all - which is very true.”

Love and hugs,
Esther Bunny (with help from her mom)