The Rabbits Is Coming

I admit it, I am a rabbit person.  For some strange reason, I just connect to the furry critters.  I don't know why.  I felt the connection long before I even saw a real one.  I just share so much in common with them. I consider myself cute, timid, and somewhat cuddly; but I can get a little ferocious if backed into a corner.  I am prone to going fast, even when it isn't necessary.  I have that mysterious, mystical side that many east Asian cultures see in rabbits, as well as their lagomorph cousins hares.  I even have that playful, trickster nature that rabbits can have in folklore.  As for the remarkable fertility, I am still waiting.  Strangely enough, I had an even stronger tie to rabbits that I only recently discovered.  My grandfather's name, Arlie, actually means something along the lines of "from the hare's field/meadow."  I never realized that.  If I am ever lucky enough to have a daughter, I had actually been thinking about naming her Harleigh, the feminine form of his name and probably spelled that way. [As for boy's names, my top five, in rough order are:  Toby Jr., Jacob (or whatever name starting with J is my father's), Matthew, Lawrence, and Donald (as in the duck, not the President) {As for why I have more boy's names than girls, for some reason I always picture having more boys, particularly multiple births; probably that rabbit thing again.}].  Back in 2002, a rabbit colony just seemed to pop up in the hill behind my home.  Pretty much every day that summer, I saw at least one rabbit.  Morning and evening, totally at random.  Sometimes, I would have to stand in the back yard for minutes, just trying to catch a glimpse of once hopping by, but I saw one every day.  The best time was the following year.  It was a Sunday evening, just after a shower.  The front door was open, and I took a quick glance at the yard.  I saw some movement.  It was a baby bunny hopping in the grass.  Then, I saw another one.  And another one.  And another one.  In total, there were six or seven bunnies, hopping about.  Then, I saw the mama rabbit.  How did I know it was their mother?  A few minutes later, I looked out again.  There was the mother, lying on her back, with all the baby bunnies trying to nurse.  It was one of the most beautiful and sublime things I have ever seen.  I would have taken a picture, but I was afraid the light and sound would scare them off, and I didn't want to ruin the perfect moment.  While I have had a number of unusual animal sightings, both in my yard and elsewhere, this was still the best one.  [About that title.  I know it is grammatically incorrect.  It is a reference to an episode of the '80's cartoon U.S. Acres.  It is probably an allusion to something else as well, but I can't place it.  The episode was about a doomsayer prophet warning about a rabbit invasion with a sign.  Many characters commented that is was incorrect, too.  At the end of the show, a rabbit stampede came by and took down a bad guy, saving the characters.]