Easter Bunny Hunt

During the early part of holy week, Padawan, our 4 1/2 year-old pet rabbit, passed away.

I distinctly remember receiving the news.

Kuya Paolo was calling my cellphone but I couldn't answer it because I was inside the library for a final research. I texted him that I could not answer his call but he could text me instead.

He replied in this straightforward manner: "ok and by the way, padawan the rabbit died. I'm burying him now."

I bombarded him with questions until I let the news sink in. I felt really sad upon hearing the news but I thought that Pada lived a good life.

To those who have never met Padawan, he would have charmed you if you did. He charmed my entire family and a lot of guests in the house.

It was Ling who bought Pada (who did not have a name then) for a science paper in high school. Ling bought 12 supposedly female rabbits but the 11 eventually died. Unlike the others, Padawan escaped from her cage and never drank anything from the experiment. It was an experiment on caffeine and heart rates. Pada jumped off from the top of a big TV box by sniffing around its perimeters first and landing on all fours on the floor. From this, she earned the name "Padawan" from Starwars' jedis-in-training and lived by it. She was never caged again ever and freely hopped around our house.

Eventually, Ate Monica discovered and pointed out to us that Pada was... surprise, surprise!
...not a she but a he.

I called him adaptive and resilient because he survived so many misadventures in his life. I even created a blog and named it after him.

One of his literally BIG scares was having a face-to-face encounter with Ava, our old dalmatian. There was also a time when we all thought that Pada escaped from the house only to find out that he had a broken leg and got stuck behind our old sofa which we eventually changed. All of us thought that he was dying then because he didn't want to drink water or eat the leafy vegetables we held for him until Nikki and I gave him a banana and he began to sniff and eat it. After a few days, he no longer limped.

I remember my friends, Jill and Mayen, thinking that Pada was a dog the first time they saw him until he hopped in front of us. He did sort of look like a puppy from afar.

I remember my other dear friend Sarah who one time slept at our house and was surprised by Pada who woke her up from her sleep. Apparently, Pada sat on top of her tummy.

I remember my best friend, Cami, who met Pada when she visited from Canada. She was amazed to see Padawan in person and to see how real it is that we have a rabbit living amongst people.

I remember Franco being wary about finding a hyper little bunny inside the house for the first time. And being even more wary that Pada attempted to hump his legs. But when he called me that day Pada passed away, I told him the sad news right away and he spent time listening to me.

And then there were other more stories of other people and I hope to gather their stories in time if they just share them with me.

Our family's fondest memories of Pada were made out of habits. My dad would have breakfast with Pada under the table everyday and we would have family dinners with Pada staying under the dining table although we trained him to just eat on a particular spot in the kitchen. Believe it or not, he was even toilet-trained to urinate and defecate by the kitchen door leading outside. The power of reinforcements is amazing. Really.

I remember bringing Pada to the preschool where I worked a little more than two years ago because our topic was on rabbits. He survived my driving and that feeling of being placed in a "zoo" where people look at him with curiosity (but this time just little people). I never brought him out of the house again but I think that it was nice for him to be seen by eager little preschoolers and to hear the "oohs" and "aahs" of little children. And maybe by writing this post about him, the "oohs" and "aahs" will come from the readers who have never met Padawan and would never have thought that a little brown rabbit could do all that.

As I write this, my mom and younger sisters are out to buy a new bunny as planned. My dad was the one who suggested the idea. And I trust them that they'll get another good rabbit. My special request was for them to find a gray one this time. If not that, I just trust their judgment to find the right one. Oh, we're not expecting to find another Padawan in this process. Our next rabbit will have his or her own special stories to share. ;)

A special tip for those who may want to have a rabbit as pet or as a gift someday... Remember to always choose a colored rabbit over white ones with red eyes. White rabbits with red eyes are such because they are albinos and as compared to other rabbits, they have lower intelligence and a shorter life span. Just remember to get the colored rabbits -- gray, black, brown, or white with dark spots. If you forget this tip, my blog name will remind you of it.

Happy Easter, everyone.

written in the memory of
Padawan the Rabbit
October 2002 - April 2007