Today's Holidays: National Winnie-the-Pooh Day, Peking duck Day, Thesaurus Day
Fun Fact of the Day: Christopher Robin is the name of A. A. Milne's son.
The other day I sat in a circle in a small classroom with a square-like pattern on the wall that extended throughout the ceiling. During the semester, we were told to “look up” instead of at our phones or at the ground, so I looked up and noticed this odd structural choice. I stared it at it for a few seconds, appreciating the architectural detail, before returning to my pizza and Diet Coke. We had all just turned in our final papers for our freshman seminar, called “What Makes for a Meaningful Life? A Search”, and we celebrated the culmination of all that we have learned and accomplished with a pizza party.
As we chatted about the topic of our final papers, our exam schedules, and how delicious the pizza was, with just the right ratio of cheese to sauce, I thought back to the first day of our class. Actually, I thought for a little while longer about the pizza, because the cheese was melted, but not to the point that it slid off the crust, and the crust was crispy, but not so much so that it was hard to bite into or loud when you chew. Or maybe I was just really hungry, because I’ve been trying a new “diet” for my upcoming Florida break plans, and I romanticized the pizza a bit too much. Either way, my mind eventually moved away from the cheese and sauce and towards the beginning of the semester.
This was probably the class that I was most looking forward to taking, because I love any chance to both explore and write about life: what it means to live, how our lives fit within the universe, and the relationship between happiness and meaning. I was excited to be introduced to new books and readings through the process, as well as spend three hours, once a week, discussing the content and how it relates to meaning in life. Imagine my surprise when the first book that we were assigned to read was A. A. Milne’s Winnie the Pooh. What could Winnie-the-Pooh possibly have to say about what makes for a meaningful life? Could Pooh or Piglet or Eeyore actually have any insights into what could provide my life with meaning?
I began reading about the life of Pooh, Christopher Robin, and the other animals in the forest: their day to day adventures, thought processes, problems, and solutions. By the end of the illustrated picture book, I found myself both immersed into the story and enriched with new ideas about meaning. Our professor told us to think about whether or not we find any meaning in Winnie-the-Pooh, so I compiled a list of everything that I took away from the story:
1. We find meaning through sharing our lives with others and surrounding ourselves with people who recognize, love, and respect us. Life is not an individualistic journey; it is meant to be experienced with others. The animals of the forest all crave attention; they want to matter to each other and feel important. Piglet loves any chance to be “useful” and Pooh feels special when Christopher Robin throws a party for him after he saves Piglet from the flood. In such a large world, our relationships, what we mean to others, serves as a source of meaning. We feel that our individual life matters to those around us.
2. Relationships and friendships help us to develop and grow into ourselves: Zadie Smith notes in Swing Time (I really take any chance I can get to tie this beautifully written, insightful book into my writing) how “all friendships—all relations—involve this discreet and mysterious exchange of qualities, this exchange of power”. As I examined the relationships in Winnie-the-Pooh, I observed how Pooh gives Piglet confidence, Piglet gives Pooh a friend who understands and accept him for exactly who he is, Roo gives Tigger confidence, Tigger gives Roo excitement and curiosity, Christopher Robin gives Pooh a sense of comfort and protection and Pooh gives Christopher Robin humor and innocence. The foundations of our character and personality are constructed by our relationships.
3. We find meaning in life through kindness, care, and thoughtfulness. When we open our hearts to the world, to the people in our lives in this way, our lives are then filled with joy and happiness. One of my favorite quotes in the book is: “A little consideration, a little thought for others, makes all the difference”. Piglet picks violets for Eeyore when he senses that he is down, and Pooh wants to build Eeyore a house when he notices that he doesn’t have one of his own. The animals of the forest act from a pureness in their hearts, and they develop a sense of meaning from their care for others.
4. Life is about discovering who we are, what makes us unique, and recognizing our strengths and weaknesses. In order to find meaning in life, we must define our identity. While we do not have to know exactly who we are, going on an exploration for meaning in life will help us further develop our identity as we figure out our interests, passions, and goals. When the animals collectively try to “unbounce” Tigger, annoyed by his bouncy nature, Tigger’s bounciness is what saves Rabbit when he is lost. We are all unique, and it is our differences that defines our identity.
5. Childhood is an important part of life, and though we eventually outgrow this time phase, certain aspects of childhood: innocence, appreciation of the “little things”, and easily attained happiness are valuable throughout our lives. The animals, especially Pooh, are focused on the nature around them, containing beauties that are often taken for granted for as we age. The animals of the forest also live in a timeless world; while they have a sense of time, it is never a constraint or worry. Childhood is, similarly, a timeless world, in which we move from each moment to the next, appreciating what is right in front of us in the present. As we grow older, we lose this focus on the present to the past and future. Pooh and Piglet go around the forest wishing everyone a “happy Thursday”. While many of the other animals do not understand their reasoning, Pooh insists that there is merit in each day, and we should appreciate both the present and simplicity.
Our discussion that we had in class about Winnie-the-Pooh was one of the most energetic, passionate, and intellectual discussions that I had ever had in a class. It is interesting how, with careful thought and an open mind, we can derive meaning in life from the most unexpected places. We read many other texts throughout the semester, but Winnie-the-Pooh stuck with me because of what A. A. Milne says about life and the world as a whole, masked beneath the enjoyable story of Pooh, Christopher Robin, Tigger, Eeyore, and the other animals of the timeless forest.
Recently I have felt a bit lost. Exams are stressful, people can be disappointing and fall short of expectations, and the prospect of the future just sometimes feels intimidating. But as I sat in the circle of the architecturally-odd room, surrounded by my classmates and thinking about all that we have discussed throughout the semester, I was reminded of the meaning in my life: my genuine and compassionate friends, supportive and loving family, passion for writing, love for reading, current (let’s see how long this lasts) interest in running, and simply my day to day interactions, sights, and experiences that make me smile. There is just so much in life to smile about, and when we truly take the time to think about this, either when we are down or lost or happy or sad, we will see the beauty that exists both all around and inside of us.