The fifteen-minute drive to their grandmother’s cottage seemed to take hours as Lydia fidgeted in the back seat. Her foot bounced impatiently as her father turned the car up the long gravel road. She pressed her face against the window and burst out of the door the minute the car stopped in the parking spot reserved for them.
“Grandma!” Lydia exclaimed. She raced past the rainbow of colorful flowers in the garden into the waiting arms of her grandmother.
Grandma Louise chuckled at the young girl’s enthusiasm. “I missed you too, sweetheart.”
She led the girl inside as her parents followed at a more reasonable pace. The adults shared friendly greetings with one another and caught up over everything they’d missed in the week since their last visit.
Lydia busied herself with studying the backyard through the sliding glass door. She pressed her face against the glass and wondered where the Easter Bunny had hidden the eggs this time. At six-years-old, her education hadn’t taught her much about animals, but she did know that bunnies didn’t lay eggs. Still, she wasn’t really going to question it. He left her candy-filled eggs. That was what mattered most.
The adults chuckled as they watched the girl focus so hard on her upcoming task.
“Are you ready to find your eggs, Lydia?” Her grandmother asked.
Lydia nodded enthusiastically as she spun on her heel, her floral pink dress billowing out around her. “Yes, please!” Lydia smiled with pride at remembering her manners at such an exciting time. Her parents should be proud.
With that said, her mother handed her a basket and everyone went out into the yard. The adults sat in chairs on the patio as Lydia darted into the yard with a shriek. She found her first egg beneath a pretty blue flower. There was another by the tree where her swing was hung. And one more in the all of the mint.
A flash of movement by her grandmother’s vegetable garden caught the girl’s eye. Normally, she avoided vegetables, but she made an exception this time for the sake of candy.
When she saw the bunny nibbling on a carrot, she froze. Was this the bunny? Could she really be seeing the Easter Bunny?
She crept forward, quiet as a mouse carrying a basket filled with loose eggs and crinkled paper grass. Naturally, the rabbit heard her coming and startled at the sight of her. However, it didn’t run away. It took a slow bite before nodding its head toward a nearby purple egg.
Lydia picked up the egg with a smile. “Thank you!”
The rabbit nodded at her and she returned to her search. Before she got too far, she heard it say. “Hoppy Easter!”