Lessons from a silly-old-bear
I took my kids to see Christopher Robin this weekend. I am not entirely sure what they thought about it but I absolutely loved it. Go see it, whether you have kids or not.
In the movie you watch Christopher Robin go from a sweet child to a middle-aged man, desperately lost in the world. He is a workaholic who has abandoned his family for the pursuit of what he thinks is right.
Suddenly, in his darkest moment, Winnie the Pooh reappears in his life. This amazing and not-so-silly bear shows Christopher Robin the path back with his powerful one liners.
There are some profound moments in the movie and some great reminders about how we should be living our lives.
On going places, Pooh says, “I always get to where I am going by walking away from where I have been.”
And on being present, he says, “Today is my favourite day. Yesterday, when it was tomorrow, it was too much day for me.”
There is a scene where Christopher Robin finds himself back in The Hundred Acre Wood with his childhood friends, and his briefcase. He has missed a weekend away with his wife and daughter Madeline because he has to work. His briefcase contains the important papers that he has been working on for a meeting on Monday morning.
One of the characters, I think Piglet, asks, “What’s a Madeline? Is it more important than your case of important things?”
“Why no, of course not”, replies Christopher. “Madeline is my daughter. She is the most important thing in the world to me”.
“Well, why is she not with you?”, questions Piglet innocently.
For me, the most important lesson was the power of doing nothing. Pooh is a big fan of nothing. I think we all need more nothing.
“People say nothing is impossible. But I do nothing every day.”
“Doing nothing often leads to the very best of something.”
Pooh would make a great investor. He is humble (“I am a bear of very little brain”), and he understands that if you want to end up with something, the best thing you can do is nothing. I can almost imagine Warren Buffett saying exactly the same thing.
If in doubt, be more like Pooh.
georgie@libertywealth.ky