The Rabbit In The Moon Is Clear Tonight

I confess. I was very ill about going to work today. I went to be ill last night and I woke up ill this morning. I didn’t want to be at home sick or at the hospital with an emergency, and I am indeed grateful for a job, but I just wasn’t feeling it today…until Barb the Art Teacher and I laughed so hard that we cried during lunch…and then my mood magically improved. I guess laughter does that.

A brief background: I can’t see the man in the moon. Despite demonstrations, diagrams, and explanations, I just can’t see it. Barb has trouble seeing it, too, but she can see the rabbit in the moon (popular in Mayan/Aztec culture) and thought I might be able to see it, too. As soon as she showed me the rabbit, I could see it! Needless to say, I was very excited, and I’ve looked at the rabbit in the moon many times in the years since B introduced him to me.

On Sunday, January 24 of this year, at 7:24pm, I received a text from B that said, “The rabbit in the moon is clear tonight.” I understood exactly what she meant and didn’t think anything more of the text until a few days passed and I stumbled across it in my inbox. I chuckled. Then a few more days went by and I stumbled across it again. I chuckled more. A perfectly normal and clear message when I received it, “The rabbit in the moon is clear tonight,” suddenly sounded like a code message. When I mentioned this thought to B after dropping off a load of wood for the burn pile, she agreed with me. She then proceeded to give me another code-like phrase to help me successfully navigate my truck out of her yard: “Drive up through the blueberries.” I responded by saying, “The rabbit in the moon is clear tonight.” I drove through the blueberries laughing and left B laughing in her yard.

A few days ago, I randomly texted B a message that only said, “The rabbit in the moon is clear tonight.” She responded, “Drive up through the blueberries.” That was the extent of the conversation.

Then lunch happened today.

B eats the same thing for lunch each day: a “lettuce” sandwich, “diet” chips, carrots, and a pickle. When she reached into her lunch bag to get the Ziploc bag that held the pickle, she said, “My pickle is leaking.” I reverted to adolescence and burst out laughing. In response, she said, “The rabbit in the moon is clear tonight.” I said, “Drive up through the blueberries.” She said, “Stop making me laugh so hard or I’m going to pee myself.” I said, “Then your pickle really would be leaking.”

B immediately ran to the bathroom. I stayed in her classroom crying. B and I were both still laughing when she got back to her room. And for the rest of the day, I’ve been in better spirits.

Thank you, laughter (and friendship), for making that so.