March, the fickle, endless-feeling month is upon us and friends from all over the country have been emailing us tales of the wild weather they’ve been experiencing, from ice storms in the Pacific Northwest to seventy-degree days followed by frigid winds in the NorthEast. Some suffer flu that won’t let go; others are feeling serious blues. Will this doldrums ever end?

We found some answers in our recent reading and wandering, starting with haiku by Buson written in the 1700’s:

“Never give up!”—
says the snowy bamboo
darkening my window.

A battered copy of Babar the King at our nearby park’s Little Free Library jumped into our hands, so we sat on a bench to read it. After a terrible week, Babar dreams that Misfortune and his frightful companions, Despair, Indolence, Fear, Cowardice, Anger and Discouragement came to visit him.

Babar was terrified until graceful winged elephants flew in to chase them away and brought back Happiness via Health, Hope, Goodness, Intelligence, Work, Learning…JOY…

A perfect little reminder during this very “March” week.


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2 replies on “Never Give Up! (Buson and Babar)

  1. befriend your shadows
    or turn on the light

    ; )

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