By Johna Till Johnson
The Easter Bunny appears in the wine store!
Friday night I saw something I haven’t seen since I was five or six years old: The Easter Bunny! Who, apparently, buys wine for Easter dinner just like the rest of us.
Actually, I didn’t quite see the Easter Bunny back then, either. So technically this was my first actual sighting.
We were living in Naples, Italy, at the time. I’d awakened early Easter morning, excitedly anticipating the basket and associated goodies, only to find… nothing.
Nada. Zilch. The Easter bunny, apparently, hadn’t arrived.
Maybe he just hadn’t arrived yet, my parents suggested optimistically. Maybe he’d show up later on. There was still time! So, like the good Catholic family that we were, we headed off to Easter Mass.
Upon our return, I pushed through our creaky garden gate. My father was holding my hand. “Look!” he shouted suddenly. “It’s the Easter bunny! I saw his fluffy white tail!” And the two of us dashed off around the house in mad pursuit. I didn’t see anything, but I wasn’t as tall as my dad. And maybe, if we ran fast enough, I’d actually see the Easter bunny!
You know how this story ends: when we came in the front door, panting and puffing, we discovered a giant, green-and-yellow Easter basket on the kitchen table. We hadn’t succeeded in seeing him, but evidently the Easter bunny had arrived.
Even as young as I was, I put the pieces together pretty quickly. I never found out what happened to delay the Easter basket, or at what point my parents hatched the scheme.
And I don’t remember why I figured it out. Maybe it was the fact that my father, who hadn’t the slightest bit of whimsy, didn’t pull off his acting job quite credibly. All I know is that was the end of my believing in the Easter bunny.
Until now.
Vladimir Brezina (RIP) 
Johna Till Johnson
Wind Against Current 
Loved this story!
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Thanks!
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Thanks for this delightful story. I heard from my step-daughter yesterday that my 8 old grand-daughter claimed the Easter Bunny couldn’t be tall enough to place Easter eggs so high. Her 5 year old sister chirped up, ” the easter bunny can hop, Emma!” Who knows if the jigs up? Happy Easter Joanna.
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Well, you can show her the picture of the Easter Bunny! He’s pretty tall!
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He looks very proud of bunniness!
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He was cuter when he smiled, but the photograph wasn’t quite as good. Still fun!
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A sweet story – thank you! 🐇
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You’re welcome!
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At last – a bunny for the parents…
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Haha! Only if he was shopping for OUR supplies….
I swear, New York is endlessly entertaining. There were the two guys sitting on a couch in the middle of the road that I posted a few days ago. And the Easter Bunny in the wine store.
I remember many years walking down 6th Ave/Ave of the Americas and encountering a guy wearing nothing but Saran Wrap. A LOT of Saran Wrap, so it was opaque. But still… different!!
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With a mom who lives at 90 and 3rd (SE corner), I found the story funny, but was really impressed with how local NYC can be.
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Oh gosh, that reminded me of one year when I left out a carrot for the Easter Bunny, and my big sister put some gnaw marks on it that convinced me that there was actually a rabbit hiding somewhere on the premises until she ‘fessed up.
I once saw a guy wearing a metallic pink unitard riding a unicycle down the street in SoHo. This being SoHo, hardly anyone was giving his a second glance!
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