Short Stories

Love Ye Your Enemies

by Lynae Fisher 
04/20/24
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The sun shone brightly on the fresh, cool, spring morning.  Spinach-thief stretched out in the warm sun and was almost asleep when suddenly something pounced on her!  Startled, she jumped, but it was just Carrotbane. 

“Caught ya’ sleepin’, huh?” laughed Carrotbane.

“Hey!  That wasn’t very nice!  I was trying to sleep!” exclaimed Spinach-thief. 

“Carrotbane!  You about made her jump right out of her shoes!”  Appledentor said disapprovingly. 

“This grass is so soft and moist!” declared Spinach-thief while rolling in the grass and sniffing the Glacier Lillies.  

“’For, lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone; The flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land.’  Song of Solomon 2:11-12” quoted Appledentor. 

“It certainly is beautiful in the spring,” replied Spinach-thief.

Suddenly they heard a high-pitch terrified squeal of a kitten!  The dog, who guarded the garden, began barking ferociously as if trying to save the kitten for some enemy.  Howly-prowly flashed by fleeing from the area.  As he fled, they noticed something drop from his mouth.  When Howly-Prowly was safely gone away, the three rabbits hopped over to see what he had dropped.  It was a tiny kitten scarcely a few weeks old. 

“It’s so tiny!” exclaimed Spinach-thief.

“And so harmless,” added Appledentor.

“And helpless.  It won’t last long without mama.  It can’t eat grass and Glacier Lilies at that age!” stated Carrotbane.  “What are we gonna do about this poor little kitten?”

“Mama Cat probably won’t find it out here.  After all, she probably thinks it has been devoured!  It needs help getting back,” agreed Spinach-thief.

“But what about the big mama cat?  This tiny kitten may be harmless, but mama cat…  She could have us for dinner!” exclaimed Appledentor. 

“We can’t just leave the kitten out here to die.  I have an idea.  Help me get this kitten on my back.  We’ll carry it back!” decided Carrotbane. 

Saying no more, Appledentor and Spinach-thief carefully lifted the frightened kitten onto Carrotbane’s back.  It clung tightly to the soft rabbit.  With that, they began their journey towards the house where the cat lived.  As they neared the yard, they saw the mother cat pacing and crying for her little one.  Hearing her mother call, the kitten meowed in reply.  The mother cat jumped around to see the rabbit approaching with her kitten.  She rushed forward to meet them. 

“Oh thank you!  Thank you!  I was so worried!  I thought surely that horrid Howly-prowly had devoured her!  How ever did you find her?” exclaimed the grateful mother as she embraced the kitten.

“When the dog barked, Howly-prowly dropped her as he ran past us in the forest,” explained Spinach-thief.

“That Howly-prowly is dangerous!” stated Appledentor.

“Had the guard dog not scared him away and you not have brought her back he would certainly come back for his dinner.  Thank you my friends,” declared the mother cat. 

“Well, we had best be getting home before Howly-prowly comes back and finds us!  Glad we could help your little kitten,” announced Spinach-thief. 

“Good bye!  Perhaps we can meet again some other time,” replied the mother cat.

After saying their good byes, the three rabbits hopped back into the woods and headed towards home. 

“Well, Mama Cat didn’t eat us,” commented Carrotbane.

“No, she was very grateful to see her little one safe.  I don’t think a snack crossed her mind,” agreed Appledentor.

“And now we have a friend!” replied Spinach-thief.

“This reminds me of Luke 6:35-36.  ‘But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil.  Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful.’” quoted Appledentor. 

“It can be surprising what a little kindness can do even when dealing with a hard core enemy,” pondered Spinach-thief.  “This also reminds me of Romans 12:20: ‘Therefore, if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head.’”

“Well, we saved the kitten and I have an appointment with the haystack.  If you’ll excuse me, I’m hungry.  You’re welcome to join me,” interrupted Carrotbane. 

“An appointment with the haystack!?” exclaimed Spinach-thief. 

“I thought you were a rabbit, not a cow!  Don’t eat too much, or you might not be able to get away from Howly-prowly!” Appledentor laughed.

“Well, OK, I suppose I could stop by for a quick snack,” consented Spinach-thief.

“I guess I can hop along too,” agreed Appledentor.

With that, the three rabbits hopped to the haystack for a snack before returning home to their dens.