week 10 story: when a rabbit and a possum search for wives

In the early stages of life, a possum bumped into a rabbit on a stroll outside and ended up they becoming lifelong friends. They did everything together even though the rabbit became irritated with the possum every now and then due to the fact that he could quite keep up. Besides the times of irritation, the two seemed to be inseparable. 

As time passed, the two saw others getting married and moving onto the next stage in their lives. They began to wonder what their futures are going look like and, to say the least, they weren't pleased with what they were imagining.

"We need wives like our friends," explained the rabbit. The possum agreed as that seemed to be all of the village animals' main source of happiness during this chapter in their lives. 

Immediately, the rabbit and possum sat down to start exploring their options.

"Tammy?!" shouted the rabbit with excitement.

"Taken," the possum sighed. 

"Lola?" the rabbit continued.

"Keep trying," the possum mumbled. 

They went back and forth for nearly an hour as they listed every woman in town. There seemed to be no hope.

"Oh, oh! I know! How about I go to the next village over and tell the chief of town that they must all marry immediately?" the rabbit shouted.

Although hesitant, the possum was not completely opposed to the idea. They sat in that same spot for the rest of the afternoon creating a script and timeline for the events to take place. The plan was set to begin the next morning.

The next morning came along and it was time to get going. The rabbit was so excited when the began their journey that he didn't even realize that he had left the possum in his dust. By the time he arrived at the door of the courthouse, he noticed his friend was no where to be found, but it was too late. The townsmen saw him and asked him what his quest was.

With little time to think, he continued on with the plan and announced that everyone must marry immediately. He was beyond nervous as he didn't think they would buy into his plan. 

A minute of silence passed and the rabbit snapped, "well, what are you waiting for?!"

The whole town stirred up in chaos as everyone paired up. Luckily, there was one woman left over and she was linked up with the rabbit. The rabbit was trying desperately not to expose the ear-to-ear grin trying to surface.

As the rabbit got back on the stand to announce his goodbye, rattling was heard from the bushes. 

"Who is hiding in that bush?" asked the rabbit.

Slowly, a girl possum crept out of the bush in tears. Almost at the same time, his possum friend arrived exhausted. 

"Don't cry, sweet girl! Look at this handsome gentleman that just arrived. This must be destiny!"

From then on, the possum couple were the happiest in the village!

(Photo from WikiMedia.)

Author's Note: The original story was about a rabbit and a possum that each want a wife, but can't seem to find one. They decided that their best bet was to go to the village over and pretend to be on a council. They were going to tell them that they all must marry at once in a hope that they themselves will become married. 

As they traveled to the next town together, the rabbit moved much quicker and outran the possum. He tried to wait, but the people in the village noticed him and took him to the council lodge. The rabbit went on to deliver his news to the chief and he passed the message along to the people.
Immediately, everyone, including the rabbit, found a mate. By the time the possum got to the village, there were to wives left for him. So, the rabbit traveled on to the next village. This time, he told the chief that there must be peace at once. The animals all began to fight, but the rabbit got away quickly. The possum reached the lodge and all the animals began to gang up on him and they hit him so hard that he just decided to play dead.
This is the reasoning behind why possums play dead.
To me, this story did not flow very well. For that reason, I took out the whole possum playing dead theme and just expanded on the animals finding wives. 

Great Plains unit: Why the Possum Plays Dead by Katharine Berry Judson.