Bunny woke. The sun was warm. He sniffed. His red ball was gone. "Oh!" said Bunny. He was calm. He would find it.
Bunny put on a tiny hat. He twitched his nose. "Toc-toc," went the gate. He hopped out. "Hop, hop," said Bunny. He looked by the tree. No ball. He looked by the pond. "Plouf!" said a frog. The frog smiled. "No ball here," said Frog.
Bunny sat. He thought. He felt the ground. He saw small prints. Little round rings. He sniffed again. "Sniff, sniff." The smell was sweet. He picked up one crumb. He smiled. Someone had a snack.
Bunny met Squirrel in a bush. "Hello," said Squirrel. "Have you seen a red ball?" Bunny asked. Squirrel shook a nut. "Not here," she said. But Squirrel pointed to a trail. The trail had tiny bits of red fur and more crumbs.
Bunny followed. He hopped over a log. He sang, "Hop-hop!" He found Duck by a puddle. Duck quacked softly. "I saw fur by the fence," said Duck. Bunny thanked Duck. He followed the fence. "Toc-toc," a bird pecked a seed. Bird sang a note. The trail turned to the play hill.
At the top of the hill, Bunny saw a small nest. In it sat his red ball. A bunny chick curled with it. The chick blinked. "I was cold," it said in a tiny voice. Bunny smiled. He gave a gentle hug. "Let's share," Bunny said. They bounced the ball. "Whee!" they laughed.
All friends came. They played soft games. No one was sad. The sun set slow. Bunny felt glad. He kept his hat on and his friends near.
Kind hearts and small steps solve the kindest puzzles.
