Rabbit is always a little concerned about newcomers. He loves order and is a good organizer. His heart is the right place, most of the time. But, if you stand out, like Kanga, Roo, and Tigger, he thinks you might be a threat and considers ways to get you out of the 100 Aker Wood. Eventually he comes around, and learns the error of his ways, but his first response is to chasten and banish anything that falls out of his comfort zone.
Tigger comes to town, full of pep, energetic and bouncing all over the place. He has a different lifestyle – a loud and bouncing one. Like a lot of immigrants, his way of life grates on the citizenry of the 100 Aker Wood, and Rabbit wants to do something about it. If he was able, he’d build a wall, but alas, Tigger can jump over it.
Rabbit hatches a plan to take Tigger on a long walk into the woods, then get him lost. That will chasten Tigger and he’ll be a more reserved Tigger from then on. He will realize that his habits and lifestyle are counterproductive to fitting in with his woodland neighbors.
Well, as usual, the plan backfires. Rabbit is the one who gets lost, can’t find his way home, and must be rescued by Tigger. The escapade ends with Tigger finding Rabbit, and Rabbit confessing, “Tigger, I’m so glad to see you.”
In the 100 Aker Wood, the stranger becomes a hero, the immigrant a respected member of the community – Tigger saves Rabbit and Rabbit and Roo, that strange creature from faraway become great friends.
In this xenophobic time, we need good hearted Tiggers, Kangas, and Roos, who notice the xenophobia of others, refuse to close their hearts to small minded creatures, and end up being of great service to the larger community.
I don’t know what A.A. Milne had in mind with the stories of Tigger, Kanga, and Roo, but I see them as invitations to open-heartedness. Xenophobia, the fear of strangers has no place in the 100 Aker Wood; it has no place in communities that celebrate liberty and justice for all. Like some politicians, Rabbit’s response is knee-jerk rather than thought-out. He looks for a solution for a problem that really doesn’t exist. He creates a crisis where there is no crisis.
The wisdom of the Pooh books is that while vigilance is a virtue and we need to get to know strangers before we trust them with our most precious possessions, we also need to greet strangers with open minds and hearts. We need to set aside our fears, ideologies, and reptilian brain responses to see if there are any threats; then appropriately respond. But, if no threat exists, embrace otherness whether it be in a bouncy Tigger, a single parent Kanga and her son, a Muslim immigrant, a green card holder, or an undocumented worker. Like Tigger and Kanga, we need the gifts of these strangers to flourish and grow as a people. We need to welcome diverse cultures and religions and accept the gifts that they have for us. Such is the wisdom fo the 100 Aker Wood.
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