Back in the day, Flint lived up in the mountains. He had such sharp edges, and was responsible for killing many animals. Not only Flint, but all those like him. Because of this, all the animals hated him (and all the other Flints too). None hated him more than the Rabbit. He was the chief of his people, and had seen many of them fall victim to Flint's bladed sides.
So one day, Rabbit decided to go to Flint's house to get revenge on him. He knocked on the door and was surprised to find Flint was old and decrepit.
"Yes?" asked Flint in a raspy, broken voice.
"Are you the one they call Flint?" Rabbit questioned.
"Why, yes I am young fella," Flint replied. "What can I do for you?"
At this point Rabbit was having second thoughts about his revenge plan. How could he, in his good health, cause harm to someone as old as Flint? Wasn't he taught to respect the elders?
"Are you okay?" asked Flint, snapping Rabbit out of his daze. "Why not come inside and have some dinner, I'll make you a salad and you can tell me what you want."
This caught Rabbit even more off guard. He was offering him dinner, and not even meat -- a salad!
Flint seated Rabbit at his table, prepared the salad, and put it in front of Rabbit. It had everything Rabbit loved: carrots, lettuce, spinach, everything! Now Rabbit was beginning to feel guilty about wanting to kill Flint at all. He seemed like a nice guy.
"I have something to confess, Flint," Rabbit started. "I didn't come here just to stop by. I was planning on killing you because of all you have done to my friends and family."
Flint sighed. "I knew that's why you were here as soon as I opened the door."
"Then why did you let me in if you knew I was going to hurt you?" Rabbit asked incredulously.
"Everyone must meet their fate," he explained. "I always knew what I was doing was wrong, but I didn't really have a choice in the matter. It's the only thing I'm good for. And for that I truly apologize. Now before we actually become friends, I suggest you finish what you came to do."
Rabbit reached for the weapons he had brought, but couldn't do it. He realized Flint wasn't truly bad after all. Rabbit told Flint that he would die at some point, but not until it was from old age.
"I'm sorry for everything I've done to your kind," Flint said. "You have my word that I will never hurt anyone like you again. But you must not let them know that you didn't kill me. You can tell them you got your revenge on me, but on one condition: come visit me once a week for dinner and just to keep me company."
The Rabbit enthusiastically agreed, and went back and told his kind that they would never have to worry about Flint hurting them again. And that's how Flint and Rabbit became friends.
Author's note: I liked the story Flint Visits the Rabbit, from the Cherokee Myths unit, so I decided to create a new version where instead of the two being bitter enemies, they ended up as unlikely companions. I think my story has a happier ending than the other one, even if it's more unrealistic. But a talking flint and rabbit are unrealistic in the first place, so it all works out!
Bibliography:
Myths of the Cherokee (1900) by James Mooney
Rabbit was a lot bigger than the other rabbits, that's why he was chief!
So one day, Rabbit decided to go to Flint's house to get revenge on him. He knocked on the door and was surprised to find Flint was old and decrepit.
"Yes?" asked Flint in a raspy, broken voice.
"Are you the one they call Flint?" Rabbit questioned.
"Why, yes I am young fella," Flint replied. "What can I do for you?"
At this point Rabbit was having second thoughts about his revenge plan. How could he, in his good health, cause harm to someone as old as Flint? Wasn't he taught to respect the elders?
"Are you okay?" asked Flint, snapping Rabbit out of his daze. "Why not come inside and have some dinner, I'll make you a salad and you can tell me what you want."
This caught Rabbit even more off guard. He was offering him dinner, and not even meat -- a salad!
Flint seated Rabbit at his table, prepared the salad, and put it in front of Rabbit. It had everything Rabbit loved: carrots, lettuce, spinach, everything! Now Rabbit was beginning to feel guilty about wanting to kill Flint at all. He seemed like a nice guy.
"I have something to confess, Flint," Rabbit started. "I didn't come here just to stop by. I was planning on killing you because of all you have done to my friends and family."
Flint sighed. "I knew that's why you were here as soon as I opened the door."
"Then why did you let me in if you knew I was going to hurt you?" Rabbit asked incredulously.
"Everyone must meet their fate," he explained. "I always knew what I was doing was wrong, but I didn't really have a choice in the matter. It's the only thing I'm good for. And for that I truly apologize. Now before we actually become friends, I suggest you finish what you came to do."
Rabbit reached for the weapons he had brought, but couldn't do it. He realized Flint wasn't truly bad after all. Rabbit told Flint that he would die at some point, but not until it was from old age.
"I'm sorry for everything I've done to your kind," Flint said. "You have my word that I will never hurt anyone like you again. But you must not let them know that you didn't kill me. You can tell them you got your revenge on me, but on one condition: come visit me once a week for dinner and just to keep me company."
The Rabbit enthusiastically agreed, and went back and told his kind that they would never have to worry about Flint hurting them again. And that's how Flint and Rabbit became friends.
Author's note: I liked the story Flint Visits the Rabbit, from the Cherokee Myths unit, so I decided to create a new version where instead of the two being bitter enemies, they ended up as unlikely companions. I think my story has a happier ending than the other one, even if it's more unrealistic. But a talking flint and rabbit are unrealistic in the first place, so it all works out!
Bibliography:
Myths of the Cherokee (1900) by James Mooney
Hey, Patrick! I really enjoyed your story – it was easy to follow along and I was happy to read that they got along at the end. I was expecting a sad ending and was happy to know that it wasn’t sad at all! I also thought the picture was appropriate and helped illustrate a large rabbit. Keep up the good work!
ReplyDeleteEven though it kind of worked out "in the moment", I would have liked a more in-depth reason as to why Rabbit spared Flint. Keep in mind, though, that the rest of the story made complete sense and flowed wonderfully! But I didn't really see the narrative irony come into play: I was thinking that you could make Rabbit realize that Flint was only fulfilling his part in "the Circle of Life" so to speak. Anyway, excellent piece overall, so keep at it!
ReplyDeleteGreat job with your story, Patrick. I really enjoyed reading it and thought it was a creative adaptation to the original. I read the original as well and thought it had a sad ending, so I liked how you made them become friends in the end. You did a good job with your dialogue, and your story was very easy to read and understand. Your story may be unrealistic, but many folktales/fairy tales are. Good job!
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