Stuffed animals are not the exclusive province of the very young. Even those of us who have been around a few decades can still have a penchant for these cuddly and collectible critters. Nevertheless, what do they in general and one named “Bob the Bunny” in particular have to do with tea? Read this tea tale to find out.

“Bob the Bunny” is a little snow white stuffed bunny that hubby and I bought awhile back. He keeps company with all the various little teddy bears and bunnies that seem to increase in number every time our backs are turned. There is even a little black velvety mouse who is seen whispering with “Bob” whenever the opportunity arises.

One day, unbeknownst to us, “Bob” decided to host his own tea party. We’re not quite sure where he got this idea nor, as a diminutive and rather delicate bit of plush, how he was going to manage such tea party tasks as filling the full size kettle with water and pouring the boiling water into the teapot when it was ready.

Sometimes big hearts and big ideas can move even tiny critters to great deeds. It has worked with such characters as The Little Red Hen and J.R.R. Tolkien’s Hobbit. Now, it was “Bob’s” turn to ascend to the heights of monumental achievement. He wanted to top the tea party put on last Spring by Little Yellow Bunny.

I don’t think we’ll ever really know how “Bob” managed it, but we did find various tea tins stacked near the stove to form stair steps and some kind of weird pulley device erected over the teapot. What we do know, because hubby and I caught them in the act, is that “Bob” and Little Yellow Bunny and that velvety mouse and the teddy bears were sipping tea and hooting it up in the dining room. They also had some jazz music blaring on the stereo. And I noticed a little trail of tea leaves leading from the tea pantry to the kitchen counter. It was some of Keemun Panda, a fave of ours but also one that seems to appeal to “Bob” and his plush pals.

There was also a bit of scone mix powder sprinkled on the counter and on the floor, a used baking sheet on the counter, and the tasty aroma of fresh scones filling the air (but not even a crumb of them left in sight). My secret stash of clotted cream, something that is a bit hard to come by in my neck of the woods, was missing, and “Bob” and his pals were all licking their lips and paws suspiciously, as if to get the last possible delicious bit of scones and clotted cream they could.

In a way, this tale of a bunny and his tea time has inspired us. If a little stuffed critter can overcome the obstacles of a tea kettle that is two or three times larger than himself and an oven door that probably took him and all the rest of that plush menagerie to open and close, then surely hubby and I can handle the trials and tribulations of everyday life.

Here’s hoping you have been inspired as well and will think of “Bob the Bunny” and his Herculean efforts in putting on a tea party for his friends next time you’re faced with what may seem like an insurmountable task. Cheers!

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