Runaway Bunny ?!?!

[LiminalOne]

Am I crazy or does anyone else get a little freaked out by the Runaway Bunny story. It seems like the mama is stalking the little one. If you become a fish, I will become a fisherman and drag you out of the river. Finally the bunny gives up and might as well stay home (victimized?). I know I'm probably missing the beauty of the story but I don't like the relationship modelled in the book (too coercive?). I bought it for Finn's first birthday (Saturday!) but I think that it's going back to the bookstore. There's an Inuit story about how the mama will love her baby even if it becomes a polar bear ans scares the family. That's probably more my speed.

Have a carrot!

[khrisday]

There was a thread about this book not too long ago and many folks shared your opinion. I didn't at the time post, but my guess is that those people have not yet had a child who reached the "running away" stage. Oh yes- my 6 year tells me almost daily that he is running away and moving to Australia LOL. It's a testing of limits and reassurance in a way. The child is saying "How far will you follow me?" IMHO

[LiminalOne]

oops! didn't think of doing a search for such a specific subject. guess that just shows that I'm not alone.

I'll have to think of the testing limits question. I guess that I just don't like it that the mother still gets to control the relationship physically rather than just being emotionally available (letting the bunny figure out his/her own limits).

Thanks for the tip on the other discussion.

[indigolilybear]

i didn't read the other post so i don't know if anyone else suggestedt his but i felt the same way Re: the runaway bunny till i say emma thompson in "Wit" BTW-- a great!!! movie. anyway, she is a literature professor dying of cancer ....her older,sage lit professor mentor comes to visit her and reads her the runaway bunny while she is incoherent w/pain....she (the older prof.) stops while reading it and says, "what a wonderful allegory of god's love!....beautiful"
and then it all made sense to me. the idea of wherever you go, there i'll be.....beautiful.
I bawled through the whole scene.

[Starling]

The Runaway Bunny also comes up as a metaphor in one of may all time favorite novels, Myrtle of Willendorf. It is a story about an adolescent friendship where one friend (Myrtle) distances herself from the other (Margie.) The Runaway Bunny is used as a metaphor for the unconditional love Margie shows Myrtle.

I think The Runaway Bunny is even appealing on some level to adolescents because they are also struggling with becomming independant while still feeling bonds of love with their families.

Great book!

[NewMa]

Hi there LiminalOne- I have the book that I think you are referring to with the Inuit story and I really like it. It's Mama, Do You Love Me? by Barbara M. Joose. Bit of an aside, but my mama gave it to me for my birthday this year with an inscription inside that said "Something to read to Natasha." So sweet. After reading what you had to say about The Runaway Bunny (which I haven't read and which DOES sound creepy), I think you'd appreciate this book a bit more. Nice message of mama's unconditional love for her little one. The illustrations are really nice too.
Also- Happy Birthday to Finn!!!

(Natasha's taking a super looooonnng nap and I'm getting a little bored as you can see in my gratuitous smilie usage .)

[LiminalOne]

Thanks for the title of that one

Hey NewMa

Just got back from vacation and boy is it hot here. We were in Ireland where we were totally bundled up.

Thanks for the title of that book. I returned runaway bunny and was looking for the inuit one at borders and couldn't find it. I'll order it from nonesuch books, now that I know the identifying info .

Haven't made it to playgroup in ages but think that we might have to transition to the toddler group. Hopefully we can get together at some other (maybe Mothering Mamas) gathering.

[NewMa]

Hey Angie-

Hope you had a fun vacation! I just posted over in Maine Mamas about the pending get together. We haven't been up to the playgroup in ages either as it always seems to conflict with naps/swimming/general everyday life. Hopefully we'll see you and Finn at Deering Oaks. Sounds like a good time!

~Aprill

[CorasMama]

unconditional love vs. stalker

It's funny that you should bring this up. I love the book, and think it is a wonderful statement of a mother's unconditional love and that she will not let her child be self-destructive. My husband, on the other hand, refuses to read it for two reasons: First, he thinks its creepy and that the mother IS stalking baby bunny, and Second, he can't read,
" ' If you become a sailboat... I will become the wind, and blow you where I want you to go.' "
with a straight face. Yes, ladies, I DID marry a third-grader in a 29-year-old's body!