The Complete Tales & Poems of Winnie-the-Pooh

Oh, there is so much to be said about A.A. Milne’s classic stories about the beloved Winnie-the-Pooh.  Such a wonderful, funny, happy book.

The Complete Tales & Poems of Winnie-the-Pooh

There are a lot of things I love about these stories, and several poems that are fabulous (Now We Are Six being my favorite), but what I want to focus on is Chapter Six:  In Which Eeyore Has A Birthday And Gets Two Presents.

You see, Piglet came to my rescue today, and EVERY parent of young children should know that Piglet can come to their rescue, too.

Someone popped my three year old son’s balloon.  There were tears.  Many tears.

But not for long, thanks to Chapter six.  Many years ago when I read these stories to my children for the first time, we read this chapter and laughed until we cried.  From that time forward, a popped balloon has always merited a re-telling and a re-reading of this chapter.  So that’s what we did today.

Let me share.

The chapter begins with Pooh, who finds out that it is Eeyore’s birthday.  Pooh leaves in a hurry to go find a present for Eeyore so his day can be a happy one.  Pooh arrives at his house and finds Piglet there (Pooh does a funny thing here, but that’s not the story I’m trying to tell you) and tells Piglet about Eeyore’s big day.  Piglet remembers that he has a balloon left over from his own birthday and runs to get it to give as his gift.

Pooh then goes to Owl, who attempts to write “Happy Birthday” but instead writes something that makes us all laugh when we try to sound it out.

Piglet gets his balloon and is running along to find Eeyore when he steps in a rabbit hole and falls down flat on his face with a big BANG!

Piglet pops his balloon

What Piglet thinks next makes me laugh just to write about it.  He lays there, wondering what happened.  Let me quote, “At first he thought that the whole world had blown up; and then he thought that perhaps only the Forest part of it had; and then he thought that perhaps only he had, and he was now alone in the moon or somewhere, and would never see Christopher Robin or Pooh or Eeyore again.  And then he thought, ‘Well, even if I’m in the moon, I needn’t be face downwards all the time,’ so he got cautiously up and looked about him.”

At this point, the watery eyes have gone from crying to laughing at Piglet’s train of thought.  But I digress; let me continue:

“He was still in the Forest!

“‘Well, that’s funny,’ he thought.  ‘I wonder what that bang was.  I couldn’t have made such a noise just falling down.  And where’s my balloon?  And what’s that small piece of damp rag doing?”

Well, as you can guess, the “damp rag” is what’s left of the big, beautiful balloon.  Let me assure you, every child knows what those damp rags look like but A.A. Milne found words for it all.  At this point in the story we are always laughing.

Piglet decides to go ahead and take what is left of the balloon to Eeyore as his gift.  It is so funny to hear Eeyore ask questions about his gift like, “What color was my balloon when it was a balloon?”  Sooo funny.

Piglet gives damp rag to Eeyore

Ultimately Piglet’s mishap pairs well with Pooh’s mishap and Eeyore has a very happy birthday, delighted with his gifts.

Every list of classic books for children will have this book on it, and for good reason.  I just thought I’d let you know that one of the best side effects of reading it will be a lifelong cure for the tears that follow a popped balloon.  Totally worth reading for that reason alone!

With just a little bit of animated re-telling, you can even get them happy about finding the damp rag.  Which is what we did today.  Thanks, Piglet!

Vintage Tablecloth: Blue Cherries

With two cherry trees in the backyard, someday I’d love to find a large vintage cherry tablecloth that is a real stunner.  For now, this little number does the job.

vintage blue cherry tablecloth

It measures 34 by 34 inches and is hemmed on two sides.  One of the loveliest things about it is that it is printed on linen instead of cotton.  I love the feel of old linen, drapey and supple but so strong.

vintage blue tablecloth

Of course I love the colors, the blue cherries, light blue background and cherry blossoms all over it.  It has no stains or flaws, just the gorgeous linen weave.

blue linen cherries

This tablecloth has no markings on it.  I wish I knew who made it and how old it is.  It’s a beauty!

folded blue cherry linen tablecloth

Dumping

I guess it’s been one of those weeks.  You know, the kind when although you can name at least three specific times when it was sunny, it still feels like it’s been gray all week.  So I’m giving myself permission to record 5 complaints and then I’m going to take a deep breath and move on (meaning, clean the house, or the kitchen at least).

1.  I’m not yet accustomed to what it means to have a bunch of almost teen-aged boys in my house.  I’m not used to the noise, the food, the mess.  I’ve got to figure this one out, but right now all it does is give me a headache.  Today when I offered some food to them to eat, I discovered later that they had just eaten the top layer off the ENTIRE pan!  Seriously?!  And then I thought of President Hinckley and how he said to just look the other way, so I did.  It’s still sitting there.  So are the dishes they left all over the place.

2.  I feel like I’ve been quilting my Rouenneries quilt…   FOR. EVER.  I decided to do a diamond quilt pattern on it, and it’s so full of flaws that I don’t know whether to cry at how imperfect it is, or to cry that it’s still not done.

Rouenneries quilting

3.  I should remember that the days when I want most to enjoy a bit of quiet, or a small space of cleanliness and beauty, will be the days when it is loudest and messiest.  Especially when you’re potty training a cute little boy.  You never know what sorts of things will happen.  We’ll just say they’ve been happening.

4.  Much as you love your children, is it OK to have times when you’re just not sure you can handle being in the same building with them?  I have one particular child who screams more than the other 7 put together.   Sometimes screaming children are more frustrating than other times, even when I know that the variable that changed is my tolerance level, not the screaming level.  But if I do go deaf early, I’ll know whose lungs caused it.

5.  I’ve said this a million times before, but I’ll say it again.  I really, really, really look forward to having my Heavenly Father explain to me someday why my hormone levels had to be so closely connected to my emotions.  In particular, I’d like to know why my body is wired for postpartum blues that last much longer than normal.  Sometimes I feel like I really need to understand it NOW, but mostly I’m resigned to understanding it someday when it probably won’t seem so important to me.  For now, though, I’m a little tired of days when you know that nothing out of the ordinary is wrong, yet you feel like crying or hiding or running away or some combination of the three.

OK.  I just dumped my 5 negative things.  I’m done.  Move on.  Life is good.  It’s the weekend, right?!?  Hope yours is a good one.

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