Real can’t be ugly…

/ Jodi

stuffed bunny watercolor card

How could I have missed this?

It is a classic novel.

It was made into a film, a musical, and a soundtrack.

It is a story that caused my heart to swell,
reminded me of the past,
gave me pause to consider the future.

It made me smile broadly.

It gave me a lump in my throat.

It caught me off guard and caused me to gasp.

Tears welled up, and then magic appeared.

The Velveteen Rabbit, illus. William Nicholson:

How could this be considered a “Children’s Novel” when it teaches such relevant adult life lessons?

“How about this old Bunny?” she asked.
“That?” said the doctor.  “Why, it’s a mass of germs!  Burn it at once.  What?  Nonsense!  Get him a new one.  He mustn’t have that any more!”
And so the little Rabbit was put into a sack with the old picture-books and a lot of rubbish, and carried out to the end of the garden behind the fowl-house.

How often does this happen in real life….
to real people….
whose hearts and souls are young,
but their bodies are aged, broken, weak, and have germs….?

How could I have missed this beautiful story that was never read to me as a child and that I never read to my children?

The Velveteen Rabbit.

Written almost 100 years ago, and I just bought my first copy this week…. via Amazon Prime….   for ages 3 – 7… and I am 52… and I LOVED it!

The life lessons are so deeply profound.
I so encourage you to read this… slowly – and at least twice:

The Gahan Girls: Thank you, Skin Horse. I couldn't have said it better myself.:

Thank you, Skin Horse, for your insightful wisdom.
I will try very hard to remember this every day.

Whether you have children or not, The Velveteen Rabbit is a MUST-READ!  It will be the best 10-15 minutes (depending on how long you linger over the beautiful illustrations) you’ve spent in a long time, and the best $7.49 you will spend this year.

A new, old, profound classic on our bookshelf!

It is waiting to be read to or by anyone who visits our home….   anyone who wants to know what it means to be REAL.

velveteen rabbit

Cheers & Hugs,

Jodi

P.S.  I was so amazed by this story (which I discovered after a friend posted a quote on Facebook), that I had to draw a version of a stuffed bunny (a velveteen rabbit) late one night.  It came freely.   From a Google Search of stuffed bunnies, I saw a photo similar to this one I painted.  It came quickly and easily, and I was delightfully surprised when I saw how it turn out the next morning – when the paint had dried, and my eyes were clear, and it became “Real.”  And “Real can’t be ugly, except to people who don’t understand.”

77 thoughts on “Real can’t be ugly…”

  3. I can still recite the lines to every one of my children’s books. It brings back memories of my daughter standing on my feet, one arm wrapped around my knees, shaking a well worn book as she cries, “Read! Read! Read!”

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  5. I shared this story with my children many times…..reading the book and watching the movie. Still, I don’t even think I had the perspective I do now to really understand and take this in as I did through your post. Thank you for sharing!

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  14. Love your painting of it! My 8th grade teacher read it to us in class and I bawled my eyes out. So embarrassing. In fact, it makes me cry so much that I just handed the book to me kids and told them to read it themselves because I would be too choked up to. 😳

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      • Actually, I remembered that I have the story on CD narrated by Meryl Streep. It took me awhile to find. 😉 While I was searching for it, I came across a book I had forgotten about titled, “The Velveteen Woman” – Becoming real through God’s Transforming Love by Brenda Waggoner. Because of you, Jodi, I rediscovered this wonderful book. Thank you so much! ❤️💜💚

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  17. Jodi, love your painted version of the Velveteen Rabbit. Well worn & loved. I’ve had the book and a Velveteen Rabbit since the 80s. How wonderful to know you now have this wonderful book in your bookcase & story in your memory. Chryssa

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  19. “The Velveteen Rabbit” and I have a history. I, too, only discovered it as an adult since most stories from my youth were in French. I was so amazed with this story that I started giving the book and a stuffed rabbit as gifts to my girl-friends. To this day, they say that it is one of the most precious gifts they ever received. When I was decorating the spare room in our house, I added rabbits everywhere, from the quilt on the bed to a wind chime in the window and about 20 rabbits of varying sizes stacked on shelves, in baskets, on the window sill, etc. The room is known as “the bunny room”. Even my Godchildren gave me a photo album one year with the Velveteen Rabbit theme. It is a story as old as time and as precious as love. I am so glad that is has come to you, even as an older adult. Cherish it, Jodi!

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    • Oh Marguerite – I have already thought I want to use this as a gift book for so many. I love your comment – “it is a story as old as time and as precious as love.” I am truly cherishing! 🙂

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  26. A wonderful, magical book. I have a thing for rabbits in general, especially rabbit literature from “The Velveteen Rabbit” to “Watership Down”. It’s so nice that you made the discovery! Your bunny looks just like I pictured the one in the book.

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  28. The best children’s books speak to people of all ages, and The Velveteen Rabbit is one of the best! I’m so glad you found it, and connected with it so deeply. The message of the story is timeless and universal, and so very affirming as well. Thanks for reminding me!

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  29. Thanks so much for sharing this, Jodi. I love books that offer beautiful, inspiring passages and it sounds like this story is chock full of inspiration. I’m putting it on the top of my “buy” list.

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  31. So glad you discovered this! I have a tattered copy of this, given to me by my Grandmother, years ago. She was where all good books originated from at the beginning. Sometimes, I have thought, without her, I may have never become the avid reader I am today. I knew delicious gems existed and have always gone in search because of her. Awesome post!

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