April 16, 2025 6:01 AM
NOT EVERYONE LIKES THEM. Rabbits, that is. They can be a nuisance, nibbling, even devouring, garden flowers and vegetables. I understand that justified dislike. My oldest daughter, who has been trying to establish a flowerbed in front of her Lakeville home, battles rabbits every year. They win, mostly.
But this week, rabbits are in good favor. Or should I say at least one rabbit is welcomed. That would be the Easter Bunny, bearer of candy. I will like him a whole lot if he drops a delivery of Reese’s pieces eggs (peanut butter candy in a crunchy shell) off at my house…because I limited my Easter candy purchase to one bag. I bought Robin eggs, which are malted milk candy in a crunchy shell, for Randy as they are his favorite. And they were reasonably priced at $2.48 for a 9-ounce bag. Cost—around $5 for most bags of candy—kept more candy out of my shopping cart. Not even the grandkids or my two out-of-town adult children will get chocolate bunnies from me this year. They’ll have to hope the Easter Bunny comes through.
Ah, Rabbits. I really do like them. I’m amazed at their swiftness, hopping across yards, including mine, at seemingly record-breaking speed. Yet, they can also sit statue still and commence a stare-down.
That brings me to the mammoth rabbit statue which sits along Minnesota State Highway 68 in Wabasso in southwestern Minnesota. I attended high school in this rural community named after a Native American word meaning “white rabbit.” Our school mascot was Thumper. No jokes, please. I heard plenty of bunny jokes decades ago. I am forever proud to be a Wabasso Rabbit. I mean, who has a school mascot that interesting and unique? A name that actually connects to history and place and is found in Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s poem, “The Song of Hiawatha.”
Just the other evening I saw some unique rabbit art at the Paradise Center for the Arts. I was sitting at the annual PCA membership meeting when I spotted this art in the gallery. When the meeting concluded, I hopped (well, not quite, but the word fits here) over to look at the work of Minneapolis artist Karen Peters. She explores color through printmaking, creating relief prints. Rabbits are among the subjects of her prints.
Now I expect my eldest daughter, given her dislike of rabbits, would probably favor Peters’ “More Rage” print. Amber has raged more than once about invasive rabbits and their path of destruction.
Me? I rather like Peters’ “Spiro rabbit” print with its contrast of black rabbit lurking among yellow flowers created with a Spirograph. The last time the grandkids stayed overnight, I pulled out the Spirograph, a geometric drawing device that has been around since 1965, way back when I was a kid. That Peters used this popular art tool to bloom flowers into her rabbit print shows out-of-the-box creative thinking.
Upon leaving the Paradise, I passed by Mill Town Cycles, glancing at the window display to see more creativity. You guessed it. There was another rabbit, this one poking through the grass to sniff a bee. It was a cute scene, perfect for spring, perfect for Easter.
Whether you like rabbits or not, universally-speaking, the Easter Bunny seems like a rabbit we can all love. As long as he stays out of the garden. And brings lots of candy.
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FYI: The art of Karen Peters, Justin Peters, Clayton Hubert, Scott Maggart, Gail Gaits, Sushila Anderson and Bethlehem Academy students will be on display until May 10 at the Paradise Center for the Arts in historic downtown Faribault. I photographed the art of Karen Peters with permission of the PCA. The white spots in my photos of her framed art are unavoidable glare on the glass.
© Copyright 2025 Audrey Kletscher Helbling
Posted by Audrey Kletscher Helbling
Categories: Uncategorized
Tags: art, art exhibit, Easter, Easter Bunny, Easter candy, Faribault, Karen Peters, Mill Town Cycles, Minnesota, Paradise Center for the Arts, rabbit art, rabbit statue, Rabbits, relief prints, Wabasso, Wabasso Rabbits
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Not another rabbit joke – but your Wabasso Rabbit looks just a little smaller than the ones that ate The LovedOne’s garden last year. 🐇🐇🐇 My suggestions (stew?) for solving our rabbit problem were rejected, so now the garden is fenced tighter than the North Korean border.
By Vanmarmot's Travels on April 16, 2025 at 7:16 AM
Thanks for making me laugh this morning, not about your rabbit problem but about your tight fencing.
By Audrey Kletscher Helbling on April 16, 2025 at 9:25 AM
Loving your post today and soon enough the BIG EB will be hopping down the bunny trail to deliver treats 🙂 We have three baby trees right now and chicken wired on the bottom due to the rabbits that frequent our yard. So far not much destruction from them. I think the possums leave more surprises in the yard for us to pick up before mowing and yes mister checks the yard when baby bunnies are about. We try to give the baby bunnies as much cover as possible in the yard due to the birds of prey in the area. We have had more varieties of butterflies lately and thinking of getting a butterfly house for them. It is amazing adding in native plants what butterflies, bees, and dragonflies we get in our yard along with the songbirds. I hope you get your favorite treat! Happy Day – ENJOY
By cravesadventure on April 16, 2025 at 7:26 AM
I love how much you appreciate and embrace nature and protect creatures. I would love your yard.
By Audrey Kletscher Helbling on April 16, 2025 at 9:26 AM
What a comprehensive rabbit post, Audrey. Wow. Love it. Today I posted a single scared rabbit I surprised as I drove out my driveway.not even so much as a caption. My friend Eileen’s garden suffers due to a rabbit family. She’s not a fan. I think little bunnies are cute and I don’t want to eat them. Happy Easter!
By Ruth on April 16, 2025 at 7:27 AM
I agree that baby bunnies are cute. I remember my dad bringing one home once after working in the field. I think he ran over a bunny next with his farm machinery. Yes, that happens, not intentionally.
By Audrey Kletscher Helbling on April 16, 2025 at 9:28 AM
I always find them so cute and have heard that they make wonderful pets, but can wreak havoc on a garden, so they are not always popular. rabbit art is very cute and I am a big fan of Beatrix Potter and her delightful stories. I saw a movie about her and learned so much that I didn’t know about her. That being said, I can’t buy Easter candy to leaven around the house because I have a low threshold of willpower when it comes to chocolate, but I have hinted to my daughters and do hope that the bunny night bring me one Cadbury egg on Easter. )
By beth on April 16, 2025 at 4:00 PM
I hope, too, that you get that coveted Cadbury egg. Like you, I can’t have chocolate around the house either, because I JUST WANT TO EAT IT. All of it! Beatrix Potter is a classic. One my kids was gifted a Potter dish set as a baby. I still have it.
By Audrey Kletscher Helbling on April 16, 2025 at 5:04 PM
that’s a treasure –
By beth on April 16, 2025 at 5:23 PM
When we lived in Lamberton, I knew a Larry Hubert who worked for the Highway Dept and has a steel sculpture on the west edge of Redwood Falls. He has a son Clayton. I wonder if that is your mentioned Clayton Hubert, artist?
By Merlin Kletscher on April 16, 2025 at 4:58 PM
Yes, Clayton Hubert hails from Lamberton, where he teaches art. He’s also involved with Hot Iron Days there. I didn’t have time to look closely at his art the other evening so I will need to return. But, yes, he makes sculptures/bowls, etc. by pouring molten metal into molds.
By Audrey Kletscher Helbling on April 16, 2025 at 5:11 PM
Love this post! Especially the chocolate bunny!
By Keith Goldstein on April 16, 2025 at 8:26 PM
Thank you, Keith. It’s good to hear from you. 🙂
By Audrey Kletscher Helbling on April 16, 2025 at 8:41 PM
We have a warren under our porch. The rabbits feel like family.
By Michael Watson PhD on April 17, 2025 at 10:15 AM
Now there’s a word I haven’t heard for awhile. Enjoy your rabbits. Maybe the Easter Bunny is in that warren.
By Audrey Kletscher Helbling on April 17, 2025 at 2:36 PM
I think our cat enjoys watching them the most. Ah, an Easter Bunny. Very likely
By Michael Watson PhD on April 17, 2025 at 5:15 PM