by Pa Rock
Poetry Appreciator
Last week after finishing the book that I had been reading for several days, and with the realization that my bi-monthly literary magazines (Alfred Hitchcock Mysteries and Ellery Queen Mysteries) were both due to arrive within a few days, I headed to one of my numerous crammed bookcases and pulled out a volume that looked as though it could be consumed cover-to-cover in a few hours. As I pulled the slim volume from its packed shelf, I was a little more than pleased to see that it was The House at Pooh Corner by A.A. Milne with decorations (illustrations) by Ernest H. Shepard.
(Impromptu Vocabulary Builder: Did you know that "bi-monthly" has two meanings: once every two months or twice each month? I find that very disconcerting, and I expect that if someone had tried to explain it to Winnie the Pooh, the poor bear would have found a nice sunny spot to lay down and rest his brain. My mystery magazines come once every two months. If they came twice a month, I would not have time to read anything else!)
The House at Pooh Corner is actually the second volume of stories that Milne published about Pooh and his friends who lived in an around the Hundred Acre Wood, the sequel to the original Winnie the Pooh. The original volume was meant as an introduction of all of the beloved characters, and this volume is their good-bye, for as it ends Christopher Robin has grown to the point that he is preparing to leave home for reasons that are beyond the grasp of Pooh and the others.
There are ten stories in this volume, with the title piece, "The House at Pooh Corner," serving as the opening tale. In it Pooh and little Piglet have a discussion about their friend Eeyore, the morose little donkey, and work themselves into a state of concern because Eeyore is the only one of their friends who does not have a house. They set off to the Hundred Acre Wood with the good intention of building a house for Eeyore as a surprise. On one side of the woods they come across what Pooh regards as a large pile of sticks. He and Piglet take those sticks and carry them to the other side of the wood and use them to build a rickety shelter for the donkey. Pooh decides to name the place after himself, "Pooh Corner," and the new house there will be Eeyore's home.
Meanwhile, poor luckless Eeyore actually has built himself a home, out of sticks, but he returns to it that very day to discover that it has been stolen! It's lucky for him that Pooh and Piglet have a new home for him that is ready and waiting!
This book contains a fair amount of simple poetry - songs that randomly pop into Pooh's head - and it is also a masterwork of philosophy, one which implies that given enough time all things will work themselves out. Just about any crisis can be managed with a nap or a jar of honey.
I used "Return to the House at Pooh Corner" by Kenny Loggins in this space just over a year ago, but spending a day or two with Pooh and his friends has planted the song squarely in my fuzzy little brain, so I am sharing it again.
I heard on the radio the other day that Loggins wrote this song when he was only 17-years-old, and obviously not too far beyond the youthful world of make-believe. His words are a pleasant way to slip back into the Hundred Acre Wood.
Return to the House at Pooh Corner
by Kenny Loggins
Christopher Robin and I walked along
Under branches lit up by the moon
Posing our questions to Owl and Eeyore
As our days disappeared all too soon
But I've wandered much further today than I should
And I can't seem to find my way back to the Wood
So help me if you can
I've got to get back
To the House at Pooh Corner by one
You'd be surprised
There's so much to be done
Count all the bees in the hive
Chase all the clouds from the sky
Back to the days of Christopher Robin and Pooh
Winnie the Pooh doesn't know what to do
Got a honey jar stuck on his nose
He came to me asking help and advice
From here no one knows where he goes
So I sent him to ask of the Owl if he's there
How to loosen a jar from the nose of a bear
Help me if you can
I've got to get back
To the House at Pooh Corner by one
You'd be surprised
There's so much to be done
Count all the bees in the hive
Chase all the clouds from the sky
Back to the days of Christopher Robin and Pooh
It's hard to explain how a few precious things
Seem to follow throughout all our lives
After all's said and done I was watching my son
Sleeping there with my bear by his side
So I tucked him in, I kissed him and as I was going
I swear that the old bear whispered "Boy welcome home"
Believe me if you can
I've finally come back
To the House at Pooh Corner by one
What do you know
There's so much to be done
Count all the bees in the hive
Chase all the clouds from the sky
Back to the days of Christopher Robin
Back to the ways of Christopher Robin
Back to the days of Pooh
Poetry Appreciator
Last week after finishing the book that I had been reading for several days, and with the realization that my bi-monthly literary magazines (Alfred Hitchcock Mysteries and Ellery Queen Mysteries) were both due to arrive within a few days, I headed to one of my numerous crammed bookcases and pulled out a volume that looked as though it could be consumed cover-to-cover in a few hours. As I pulled the slim volume from its packed shelf, I was a little more than pleased to see that it was The House at Pooh Corner by A.A. Milne with decorations (illustrations) by Ernest H. Shepard.
(Impromptu Vocabulary Builder: Did you know that "bi-monthly" has two meanings: once every two months or twice each month? I find that very disconcerting, and I expect that if someone had tried to explain it to Winnie the Pooh, the poor bear would have found a nice sunny spot to lay down and rest his brain. My mystery magazines come once every two months. If they came twice a month, I would not have time to read anything else!)
The House at Pooh Corner is actually the second volume of stories that Milne published about Pooh and his friends who lived in an around the Hundred Acre Wood, the sequel to the original Winnie the Pooh. The original volume was meant as an introduction of all of the beloved characters, and this volume is their good-bye, for as it ends Christopher Robin has grown to the point that he is preparing to leave home for reasons that are beyond the grasp of Pooh and the others.
There are ten stories in this volume, with the title piece, "The House at Pooh Corner," serving as the opening tale. In it Pooh and little Piglet have a discussion about their friend Eeyore, the morose little donkey, and work themselves into a state of concern because Eeyore is the only one of their friends who does not have a house. They set off to the Hundred Acre Wood with the good intention of building a house for Eeyore as a surprise. On one side of the woods they come across what Pooh regards as a large pile of sticks. He and Piglet take those sticks and carry them to the other side of the wood and use them to build a rickety shelter for the donkey. Pooh decides to name the place after himself, "Pooh Corner," and the new house there will be Eeyore's home.
Meanwhile, poor luckless Eeyore actually has built himself a home, out of sticks, but he returns to it that very day to discover that it has been stolen! It's lucky for him that Pooh and Piglet have a new home for him that is ready and waiting!
This book contains a fair amount of simple poetry - songs that randomly pop into Pooh's head - and it is also a masterwork of philosophy, one which implies that given enough time all things will work themselves out. Just about any crisis can be managed with a nap or a jar of honey.
I used "Return to the House at Pooh Corner" by Kenny Loggins in this space just over a year ago, but spending a day or two with Pooh and his friends has planted the song squarely in my fuzzy little brain, so I am sharing it again.
I heard on the radio the other day that Loggins wrote this song when he was only 17-years-old, and obviously not too far beyond the youthful world of make-believe. His words are a pleasant way to slip back into the Hundred Acre Wood.
Return to the House at Pooh Corner
by Kenny Loggins
Christopher Robin and I walked along
Under branches lit up by the moon
Posing our questions to Owl and Eeyore
As our days disappeared all too soon
But I've wandered much further today than I should
And I can't seem to find my way back to the Wood
So help me if you can
I've got to get back
To the House at Pooh Corner by one
You'd be surprised
There's so much to be done
Count all the bees in the hive
Chase all the clouds from the sky
Back to the days of Christopher Robin and Pooh
Winnie the Pooh doesn't know what to do
Got a honey jar stuck on his nose
He came to me asking help and advice
From here no one knows where he goes
So I sent him to ask of the Owl if he's there
How to loosen a jar from the nose of a bear
Help me if you can
I've got to get back
To the House at Pooh Corner by one
You'd be surprised
There's so much to be done
Count all the bees in the hive
Chase all the clouds from the sky
Back to the days of Christopher Robin and Pooh
It's hard to explain how a few precious things
Seem to follow throughout all our lives
After all's said and done I was watching my son
Sleeping there with my bear by his side
So I tucked him in, I kissed him and as I was going
I swear that the old bear whispered "Boy welcome home"
Believe me if you can
I've finally come back
To the House at Pooh Corner by one
What do you know
There's so much to be done
Count all the bees in the hive
Chase all the clouds from the sky
Back to the days of Christopher Robin
Back to the ways of Christopher Robin
Back to the days of Pooh
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