Your Unemployed Daughter

photo credit: Loren Javier

One of my favorite fictional characters of all time has to be Eeyore, the glum little grey donkey of the Winnie-the-Pooh series. I dream of employing regular sarcasm with such unfailingly dry, pitch-perfect delivery.

Here are a few of his (or, actually, A.A. Milne’s) gems:

“I might have known,” said Eeyore. “After all, one can’t complain. I have my friends. Somebody spoke to me only yesterday. And was it last week or the week before that Rabbit bumped into me and said “Bother!”? The Social Round. Always something going on.”

“It’s snowing still,” said Eeyore gloomily.
“So it is.”
“And freezing.”
“Is it?”
“Yes,” said Eeyore. “However,” he said, brightening up a little, “we haven’t had an earthquake lately.”

See how he does that? Also, give the donkey kudos for the fact that, despite his trials and tribulations, he keeps on keepin’ on, and through it all he’s a loyal friend.

I have agreed to help a friend with her move today, and I suppose if I were Eeyore I would say: “At least I got fired from my last job so I could be available to help friends with strenuous physical tasks. Oh, bother! Probably I’ll throw my back out.”

These days, in truth, I’m juggling a bunch of different projects (some soon to be disclosed, so stay tuned) beyond simply acting as moving sentry for pals. And for some reason I’ve felt a little Eeyore about it, stressed and bothered, when I should really be thankful for opportunities obtained and Good Things To Come (fingers crossed Eeyorily).

Months ago, I couldn’t have helped a friend who was moving without extensive planning and maybe a bit of begging. I couldn’t have taken on all of these different projects to be stressed about. I mean, then vs. now? Now wins, no contest.

Maybe it’s been an Eeyore week for you, or month, or year. Or maybe you’re far more Piglet or Pooh about things. (Honey does solve a multitude of ills.) But however you fit into the forest, let’s use this Winds-day to do something touchy-feely and un-Eeyore-like and be happy for what we have accomplished in the last few months, and positive about what will come next.

After all, if I were to disclose to you fully the details of my friend’s move, you would know that: 1) she has movers 2) there will be no heavy lifting required and 3) she’s offered to ply me with cake and beer to keep things amusing.

Even Eeyore couldn’t see the negative in that.