{Eating Like a Rabbit} Following Through with Expectations

Interesting.

I've been firm.

I've been dedicated.

I've been single-minded

in my quest to teach James responsibility and trustworthiness in caring for the rabbits.

He is not trustworthy.

This is a character trait that must be built from the ground up. I expect this to take a LOT of time and a LOT of testing and experimenting on his part. He's testing and experimenting to see if We are trustworthy and if it is even necessary to be so.

Day in and Day out I've been consistent... and he has been towing the line pretty much.

However, last week one day Steve sent him out to do the chores and he didn't do them. He didn't feed or water or anything. It came as a shock to him then that I was the one who checked up on his work. He expected dad to let him slide by. It was not a good day for him.

Of course, I was in Portland yesterday when it was rabbit chore time so obviously, Steve was the one who sent him out. If the little stinker didn't test him again!! He fed Chip. He may or may not have given them fresh water. Steve wasn't sure. In Betty's bowl Steve found a whole two alfalfa pellets.

Steve: "Hey, James, why didn't you feed Betty this morning?"

James: "Oh, I decided to feed her alfalfa (a fresh twig picked in the field) instead."

Steve: "Oh, I see".... and he said nothing more.

5 minutes later it was breakfast time. Steve outdid himself (indeed, cooking is outdoing himself. Poor guy!) there was oatmeal and raisins, nuts, fruit, etc... and he served James one teaspoon of oatmeal. Nothing more.

James, of course, did not appreciate that and complained rather loudly. Steve handed him a letter.

Steve: "James, you have a letter from Betty."

Across the envelope was written: BETTY IS HUNGRY.

James read it and then dug in his heels. I DON"T WANT TO FEED HER!

It took a long time, much prayer together, and everything before James was willing to go out and feed the rabbit correctly. But eventually he did. Only after his work was checked and satisfactory did he get a regular bowl of food.

It's mind-boggling mind-games. I pray for patience to endure to the end. This is not stuff I ever dealt with raising the girls. It's intense. It's like running a course set up with a thousand hidden booby-traps along the way. As I see it, he will neither learn to trust, nor be trustworthy if he is able to trip us up in these little things. The same goes for her. She's begging to feed the rabbits - that's not her issue. She doesn't want to make her bed. So crazy.

I talked to James about being sly. How this is a character trait he needs to overcome. I also wanted him to understand that we are aware that he is trying to trip us up. He grinned a great big fat grin.