How Jasper and I,
A huntin' we would go.
We'd come across a rabbit
And capture that fluffy foe.
We went out every night
After the house was clean.
The girls were in bed;
We were sneaky, never being seen.
We didn't have permission to go out,
Jasper and I,
But we went anyway
And would laugh about our being so sly.
Late at night we'd embark
On that short journey of pleasure.
Into the dark woods we'd strut,
Taking safe, calculated measures.
Jasper'd hold on to my shoulder
Walking through the woods so he didn't fall;
I could see better than him at night,
And if ever separated my name he'd call.
Most of the time he brought two lanterns;
One for himself and one he'd tie to me.
That way if I ran ahead of him,
He'd be able to see me and I he.
We'd do a lot o' walkin' in them woods
Out beyond the fence in the backyard.
Jasper'd always tire out quick-like,
And the walk back home for him was hard.
While we was huntin' though,
We wasn't thinkin' 'bout the walk home;
We was thinkin' 'bout all them rabbits
And how we'd get enough of 'em to fill a dome.
I didn't exactly know what a dome was,
But Jasper sure did.
He told me 'bout a game grown men would play
In a stadium thing with a lid.
It all sounded funny to me
Cause' I'd never heard of such a thing before,
But Jasper was smart, and I'd believe anything he told me;
At him, I'd never get sore.
After the moon went down,
And before the sun came up, home we'd travel.
I didn't mind carrying the rabbits,
Or listening to Jasper complain 'bout his feet and all that babble.
We'd get at least two rabbits every night
And would take 'em home to hang on the porch.
In the mornin' Ma'd be grateful for 'em
And her face would shine bright as a blazin' torch.
Ma never asked,
"Where'd them rabbits come from?"
We'd just leave 'em up there hangin' and she'd take 'em down
And ask us, "Ya'll want some?"
Every mornin' she never suspected,
"Them rabbits was git by Jasper and Jim!"
She told us she thought they was a gift o' God
And at dinner prayer, she thanked Him.
I liked when it was just Jasper and me
Huntin' at night together with the fireflies;
And the look on Ma and the girls' faces
After we'd brought home that surprise.
But now I'm not sure where Jasper is;
One mornin' I woke up, and he was gone.
The girls are always sitin', and cryin' and I can't do nothin' for 'em.
So I lay sprawled, covered by fleas on the lawn.
Every day for him I'm a waitin'
Watchin' the deserted, dusty, demolished road of dirt.
"Patience is a virtue," that's what he'd told me,
So I'll stay here and hope he isn't stuck somewhere hurt.
No longer after rabbits or even cats do I chase;
All I do now is sitin'.
Jasper is my master, even if he ain't here,
So I'll continue lyin' here, waitin'.
