Jessie, the rabbit was eating a carrot in a green meadow, one sunny day.
He watched the other animals run around and play and he admired them. He had always been the shy one and they were always playing without him.
They made fun of him because he got startled so easily. If a tree fell somewhere in the forest, he would rush into his rabbit hole and hide for the rest of the day. ‘You’re such a scared cat, Jessie,’ Teddy, the cub once said when she passed by him. ‘You never have any fun, Jessie.’
But Jessie, the rabbit was a cautious and wise rabbit. He knew better than to ignore every sound.
"I may look stupid and scared, but I will always be prepared for danger." thought Jessie. He would hide and curl up every time he heard a crack or saw a shadow loom over his hole.
One fine day, just like any other, a distant crack was heard. A tree fell down and a light brightly burned. Jessie darted into his hole, while the other animals continued frolicking around. Jessie shouted as loud as he could ‘Run!’, but no one heard him. So he jumped inside his hole and curled up into a ball.
While Jessie was hiding, he could still hear the others laughing. Then all of a sudden, Jessie heard some squeals, some running and then Beaver started shouting, "The forest is on fire, the forest is on fire! Everybody run, the fire is spreading!" The Beaver continued to shout as he ran past Jessie’s hole. The whole forest was in a wild panic.
Trampling everything, the animals ran away, leaving behind a cloud of dust and the forest on fire. Only Jessie was left in his hiding place, safe beneath the ground. Jessie had cleverly stashed away a supply of food and water in his hole. He knew that one day danger would come and he wanted to be prepared. He was relieved to know he had enough supplies to last until the fire was over.
In the distance, Jessie could hear a loud squeal "Help! Someone, help me, please." Jessie did not want to come out of his hole, as he knew that the fire was spreading. But then he heard the squeal a second and third time. Jessie couldn’t just hide in his hole while someone was out there on his own.
Jessie slowly raised his head from his hole. He could see the flaming trees all round. He heard another squeal and turned his head to see Teddy, the cub lying down with his leg caught beneath a thick, fallen branch. The ground around him was burning and the fire was getting closer.
The Jessie was very scared but he couldn’t just leave Teddy there. Huffing and puffing, he rushed with incredible speed towards the Teddy. ‘Jessie, please, you need to find a way to get this thing off!’ said Teddy. Jessie started running around, looking for a way to help.
Jessie saw that the other side of the branch had started to burn and was becoming thinner. Jessie had an idea and he darted down into his hole. He grabbed some of the nut casings that he had stored the water in and ran back towards Teddy. He rushed towards the branch and poured the water on the branch.
The branch was now thin and wobbly, but Teddy still could not get his foot free. So Jessie gathered all his strength and in a single dash smashed his body against it. A crack was heard and the branch broke into half, freeing Teddy. He slowly got up and approached Jessie.
Teddy was surprised at Jessie’s heroism and even more surprised at how he had managed to free him. He saw jessie lying down.
Jessie was looking very tired, so he picked him up in his mouth and rushed away from the fire into the cool hills nearby.
A few days later all the animals had settled into a new place in the woods, where the fire hadn’t reached. Everyone was still playing but something had changed. Teddy, the cub was taking care of Jessie, the rabbit who was still recovering.
No one laughed at Jessie anymore for he had saved their friend and they knew of his courage. From that day on, all of them followed in his footsteps and have been careful till this day. They now knew that being careful does not mean that you are not brave.
