I was reminded recently of the wonderful children’s book, The Runaway Bunny by Margaret Wise Brown. For those of you who haven’t read it in a while, it’s about a little bunny who decides to run away.
He tells his mother, “I am running away,” and she replies, “If you run away, I will run after you. For you are my little bunny.” So the little bunny schemes, “If you run after me, I will become a fish in a trout stream and I will swim away from you.” And the mother never hesitates, “If you become a fish… I will become a fisherman and I will fish for you.” And it goes on, and the little bunny becomes a bird, and a crocus, and a sailboat…and the mother becomes a tree, and a gardener, and the wind, and so on, always finding her little bunny. In short, it’s brilliant! I’m no connoisseur of children’s books, but I can’t think of one that better describes our relationship to God. We run away, and he becomes like us to bring us back to him.
So, reading Runaway Bunny reminded me of another favorite and classic children’s book, The Little Engine That Could. Just thinking about it makes me feel nostalgic; the little bright blue engine, the colorful vintage pictures of the dolls, toys, the clown, the candy!
But flipping through it, I realized that now its message is lost on me. “I think I can, I think I can, I think I can…” conjured up uneasy memories of self-esteem workshops in middle school and a stressful feeling that I should ditch this post and get back to studying for an exam. It seems that life is just a little too real for the Little Engine for the thoughts occupying my head are less often “I think I can, I think I can” and more “Why didn’t I?” or “No, I guess I couldn’t”. The pictures are fun, but I fear that I may have read the Little Engine a few too many times, and the Runaway Bunny not enough.
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15 responses to “The Runaway Bunny vs. The Little Engine That Could”
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I am a big fan of children's books. I'd love to see more articles like this on Mockingbird.
Roald Dahl, George MacDonald, Peter Pan, The Wind In The Willows, The Red Balloon — the list goes on!
for a look at the wind and the willows see here: http://againstthewholegrain.blogspot.com/2011/03/of-rats-and-rivers.html
great post, who doesn't love the image of a parent doing everything possible to chase after their child. Can I say Gospel — Why yes i can.
keith pozzuto
this is a great great post. it's so true that childrens' books often present the best and deepest insights into life. reading this makes me think of a lot of children's books that are just steeped in grace – filled with the message that no matter what the pesky little kid or bunny or what have you does, his or her parent will love them and protect them. that's a pretty good message for kids of all ages….
The Little Blue Engine
by Shel Silverstein (1932-1999)
The little blue engine looked up at the hill.
His light was weak, his whistle was shrill.
He was tired and small, and the hill was tall,
And his face blushed red as he softly said,
“I think I can, I think I can, I think I can.”
So he started up with a chug and a strain,
And he puffed and pulled with might and main.
And slowly he climbed, a foot at a time,
And his engine coughed as he whispered soft,
“I think I can, I think I can, I think I can.”
With a squeak and a creak and a toot and a sigh,
With an extra hope and an extra try,
He would not stop — now he neared the top —
And strong and proud he cried out loud,
“I think I can, I think I can, I think I can!”
He was almost there, when — CRASH! SMASH! BASH!
He slid down and mashed into engine hash
On the rocks below… which goes to show
If the track is tough and the hill is rough,
THINKING you can just ain’t enough!
Ha! Good for Shel! I totally fell for it. Wonderful post. I dont ever remember hearing/reading "The Runaway Bunny" but I too got a steady diet of "The Little Engine that Could"
DZ,
Wonderful and true and sad all rolled up into one desperate prayer.
This is the honesty required to "get there".
Credit where credit is due – I was turned on to that poem by the author of the post, srbaby herself.
i think a Shel Silverstein post might be in the works…
"I think I can, I think I can, I think I can…" conjured up uneasy memories of self-esteem workshops in middle school"
Same for me. All the 'motivational speakers' (cue the Chris Farley impression) I heard in middle and high school all said the same thing: "If you believe in yourself you can do anything."
Unfortunately that is an unhelpful lie.
I am a huge Shel Silverstein fan. (His wickedly funny UNCLE SHELBY'S ABZ is awesome, so is THE GIVING TREE, etc.)
Unless somebody else is planning a Shel S column for Mockingbird, I will be happy to do one.
This post is so great. We read Goodnight Moon to our 8 month old most nights, which is by the same people as The Runaway Bunny, and I noticed recently that one of the paintings on the wall in the "Great green room" is actually a frame from The Runaway Bunny. This post made me think that perhaps the truth of The Runaway Bunny is what frees the little guy in Goodnight Moon to be so at peace with where he is, so completely in the present, and free to fall asleep…
There is a "Gospelish" element to the Little Engine that Could. In the story, a train breaks down while trying to carry toys to a village over the mountain. Three big, proud, important trains pass by the broken down train. Each one of them thinks they are too important for such a silly little task as taking toys to children. Ultimately, the "Little Engine" stops and, as we all know, saves the day. The "power of positive thinking" stuff is unhelpful, of course, but the idea that help comes from small, overlooked, and weak places, and not according to "worldly wisdom," has some Gospel parallels.
One more thing: Not only is there a lot of Law in kids' books, it also features heavily in kids' board games. I've been playing a lot of Chutes and Ladders with my kids. Check it out. You move on a board covered with "chutes" and "ladders." At the bottom of every ladder there's a picture of a kid doing a good deed. At the top of the ladder, it shows the kid getting rewarded. Conversely, at the top of every chute, it shows a kid doing some dastardly deed. At the bottom, it shows the kid having reaped whatever he or she sowed.
So it's all about works righteousness. However, there's an ironic twist–to move on the board, you spin a wheel that points to a number. You move that number of spaces. If you land at the bottom of a ladder (doing a good deed), you go up. If you land at the top of a chute (doing a bad deed), you go down. It "looks" like rewards and punishments. But if you're spinning a wheel, that means it's all RANDOM! Yes, there's a veneer of "the early bird gets the worm" and a punishment/reward system, but ultimately, it's all random.
Aaron, LOVE what you said about the Little Engine–thanks for pointing that out, it's so true.
And Simeon, in the Runaway Bunny, when he pretends to be a boy and his mother waits for him at home, there's a scene from Goodnight Moon…so it all comes full circle!
From Aaron and Simeon and other parents (or children's book readers) I'm curious about other Gospel-centric kids books… Do you have any recommendations?
Great Great GREAT post!