ListenI was recently going through my books and at the same time doing a round of spring-cleaning madness. I happened to come across the book The Tao of Pooh by Benjamin Hoff. For those who have not had the opportunity to read it, it is a look at some of the Buddhist concepts through the eyes of Winnie the Pooh. I had got the book years ago as I have a huge love of Winnie the Pooh and all the characters in the hundred acre wood, and I was fascinated by the concept. As I sat on my basement floor, surrounded by the spring-cleaning chaos, I flipped through the book and reflected on all things Winnie. I concluded that the wood is really a group home, and that Winnie the Pooh was probably the best Child and Youth Care worker on the planet when you think about it. Don’t believe me? Let’s go for a walk in the woods and we will see what you think when we are done our walk.
At the hundred acre wood group care facility, Christopher Robin is the supervisor. He makes sure that everyone, Pooh, and other characters alike, have what they need to be successful and supports their learning journey. He is self-aware, loves to learn, is cheerful and likes a good adventure.
Really, he is the supervisor that every group home needs, especially when times get tough. Joining Pooh and Christopher Robin in the wood are Kanga, Roo, Piglet, Eeyore, Owl, Rabbit, and Tigger. Now, Kanga is another staff in the home. She is wonderfully maternal and looks after everyone else just the same as her little one, Roo. As an aside, Roo loves to spend time with Pooh and the other characters in the wood because he knows that just because someone is different, it doesn’t make them dangerous. Kanga is firm with everyone when needed especially when Pooh is struggling to set a limit. She tends be the person that Pooh checks in with if Christopher Robin is not around which makes her and Pooh very good shift partners.
This leaves us with the characters that our CYC’s Pooh and Kanga are there to support. Piglet who is a lovely little pig that is working very hard to move past his anxiety disorder. Eeyore, the donkey, who is has had depression for a very long time but is surrounded by an entire group of people who are prepared to meet him where he is at each day. There is also Owl. Owl is quite obviously dyslexic and does his best to hide this fact. His need to feel important is a cover for low self-esteem. His friend Rabbit experiences obsessive-compulsive disorder and struggles regularly with the changes in routine that happen in the hundred acre wood. Finally, there is Tigger and Tigger will tell you that (Milne, 1928), “The best thing about Tiggers is that I’m the only one!”. This is a good thing for Pooh and Kanga some days because Tigger’s ADHD makes him literally bounce off the walls. When you look at all these different challenges that Pooh must navigate as a CYC it can seem almost impossible. Not so for Pooh, in fact, not at all for Pooh. Pooh understands how to engage in the characteristics of effective youth care practice and lives completely in the present.
Pooh uses the moments that happen during the day to work with those around him that he is trying to support. Whether it is playing a game of “Pooh Sticks” with Piglet to teach the ability to accept that things are often beyond our control, and we need to let go. Or reminding everyone of the role of relational safety when the group tries to “unbounce” Tigger and force the change on him rather than letting him notice he needs to bounce less. Through all the adventures that occur within the hundred acre wood, Pooh ensures that he is engaging and connecting with those around him on their terms and, as a result, we see that often the experience is beneficial to both. Pooh embodies the use of self in intervention. Quite simply, or as Garfat (2023) would put it, “He is who he is, while he does what he does.” As we leave our walk through the hundred acre wood, I would challenge all of us to bring a little Winnie the Pooh to our practice. Or as Pooh would say, "Life is a journey to be experienced, not a problem to be solved (Milne, 1928)."
References
Hoff, B. (1983). The Tao of Pooh. New York, N.Y., Penguin Books.
Milne, A. A. 1., & Shepard, E. H. 1. (1928). The house at Pooh Corner. New York, E.P. Dutton.
