My dog was digging around in brambles and leaf litter. Then I saw her 13 year old self wagging her tail with the excitement of a puppy, looking into the fenced garden wanting something. I followed her gaze and saw one, two, three, four babies, eyes closed, white fur stars on their heads. One shivered in the shadows, opened its eyes and began to slowly wobble toward sunlight. Its difficulty moving and vulnerability echoed reminded me of elder mammals, even humans. I guess we are most vulnerable at the beginning and end of our lives.

I can only guess what happened before this sleepy moment in the garden, or what will happen later. I wish the tiny creatures luck, knowing that if all rabbit babies survived, there would be no violets. Good luck to all of the spring babies, including the rabbits, the foxes, the coyotes, the hawks and the violets.