Description: What Happens When You Plant a Seed Under a blue sky where fluffy white clouds drift by, a golden field stretches out like ripened rice stalks. Three little black dots are pressed into the earth. Someone must have planted seeds. A jay flutters down and pecks up one seed. A mole underground gobbles up another. Now only one seed is left. That single seed begins to stir, and a sprout breaks through. It quietly sends white roots down into the earth and pokes a green leaf up above the ground. As the sun rises and sets, rain falls, wind blows, sunlight blazes, and stars twinkle, the leaves grow lusher and the roots grow stronger. The seed grows and grows until it becomes an enormous radish. Now it's time for the harvest. A farmer appears. The rabbits pull up the radish and carry it off, grinning from ear to ear with excitement. As they march along together, hup-hup, the huge, snow-white, sleek radish and its fresh green leaves sit proudly upon their shoulders. All that remains in the ground is one big hole. Life That Leans on Life in Nature's Generous Embrace Since ancient times, farmers have planted beans in threes: one for the birds, one for the insects, and the last one for people. From the very start, they planned to share. Farming assumes a world where we live together, because every living thing depends on other living things. All living things are connected to one another. In fact, farming itself is about raising other life to eat. This picture book calls to mind that very story of the three beans. The seed planted in the ground is eaten by birds, eaten by ground creatures too. But enough remains that it sprouts, grows leaves, sends out stems, and thickens its roots into an enormous radish—a radish big enough for everyone to share and enjoy. And the rabbits eat that radish. They crunch through the juicy white root and chew the fresh green leaves and stems bit by bit. It might look playful at first glance, but the rabbits are eating with complete sincerity and devotion. Just look at their faces. "Eating" is one of the clearest ways to show that life is connected to life. From sunset through the glow of dusk until night falls, the rabbits munch and crunch away happily. Not one of them is left out—together they savor the sweetness of the harvest. Once they've eaten every last bit, they lie back with full bellies and gaze up at the stars in the night sky. They let out a satisfied burp, a hearty toot, and want for nothing more in the world. We Live Between Sky and Earth The illustrator boldly drew a horizon line straight across the center of the page, dividing the space into earth and sky. The sky above shifts through many moods—blue, yellow, white, red, dark blue-green, gray—showing the passage of time and changing weather. The sun rises and sets, clouds bloom, wind blows, rain falls, and life grows. Below, the brown earth quietly and steadily holds its ground as home to countless living things. Between what moves and what stays still, between sky and earth, there we are. Jays and moles and rabbits and ants and grasshoppers and ladybugs and butterflies and so many other creatures, big and small. The tiny seed sprouts underground and rises above it, connecting the two worlds—sending roots deep into the earth while reaching branches and leaves toward the sky. As the rabbits begin to eat the radish, the boundary between sky and earth slowly begins to dissolve. Sky and earth melt gently into one another until, before long, they become one. In this world where the boundary has vanished, the white rabbits fall asleep, twinkling like stars. The world, wrapped in darkness, is quiet and peaceful. A Joyful Song of Life That Slips Effortlessly Into Your Heart The simple, rhythmic text reads almost like song lyrics—lively and delightful. Playful sound words placed just right add extra fun throughout. Clean, uncluttered composition, vivid colors, and wonderfully quirky, humorous characters come together in a fresh harmony that carries the story forward with real energy.