A. A. Milne Thoughts

When I was very young, my bedtime ritual included my father reading to me from The House at Pooh Corner or When We Were Very Young, both by A. A. Milne. I'd sleepily rest my head in the crook of my father's elbow and stare at the detailed pen and ink Ernest Shepherd drawings, trying to keep my eyes open as the hour grew later. And when Disney came out with their bright, boisterous version of Winnie the Pooh, the outrage from my father was memorable. How dare they dumb down one of the most charming children's classics? How could they turn the sweetness of the deftly drawn sketches into flat, color-saturated cartoons? In all honesty, he had a point.

Tonight, a good friend had posted a long-forgotten quote of A. A. Milne's:

"Promise me you'll always remember: You're braver than you believe, and stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think."- Christopher Robin to Pooh

It made my eyes water. Then, I remembered another A. A. Milne quote:

"Never forget me, because if I thought you would, I'd never leave."

What is it about these words that make me wipe my eyes, just a little? Even: "We can't all, and some just don't. That's all there is to it," suddenly seems profound.

A. A. Milne had been a playwright prior to writing his books dedicated to his son, Christopher Robin. And after the success of the Pooh stories, Milne's reputation as a serious author evaporated, leaving him deeply bitter until his death. Even Christopher Milne had no affection for his father's works, nor for his childhood. They're among those rare facts that I deliberately turn from.

Instead, I think about the winding, sandy paths through the 100 Acre Woods, the pajama-clad child whispering vespers at the foot of his bed, and words of advice such as "Sometimes, if you stand on the bottom rail of a bridge and lean over to watch the river slipping slowly away beneath you, you will suddenly know everything there is to be known.".

There's something satisfying in the idea that the honesty of young children is a kind of wisdom that is regained years later. The same quote attributed to six-year old Christopher Robin rings just as true when it's credited to an adult. Sometimes, it takes decades to strip away the layers of image, posturing, and affectation that have been acquired, like an unnatural patina. And when it's removed, all that ever really mattered can once again be seen.

"So they went off together. But wherever they go, and whatever happens to them on the way, in that enchanted place on the top of the Forest a little boy and his Bear will always be playing."