The Wonderful Thing about Tiggers
One of my favorite books on my bookshelf is The Complete Tales & Poems of Winnie-the-Pooh. The lovely stories, poems and songs in it kept me enchanted as a child when my parents read them to me and when I was able to later read them to myself. They gave me much insight about life. One favorite character of mine is Tigger, who has much to teach us about being unique, special, a person of integrity and positively following our calling in this world.
There is a story from the book The House at Pooh Corner titled "In Which Tigger is Unbounced". In this story Rabbit, who we come to know through the Pooh books is nervous and rather controlling, crafts a plan to take the bounce out of Tigger. Rabbit is infuriated at how Tigger is so full of bounce and joy. You see, Tigger is quite a joyful Tigger, bouncing around and enjoying life, friends and anything which comes his way. He makes the best of situations and does not spend time pouting or looking at the negative. Tigger makes great progress in life and life is very good.
One day Rabbit says to Pooh and Piglet that he has devised a plan to take Tigger into the woods where he has never been, lose him there and then go back to get him the next day. He says it will change Tigger and Pooh asks "Why?", to which Rabbit replies:
"Because he'll be a Humble Tigger. Because he'll be a Sad Tigger, a Melancholy Tigger, a Small and Sorry Tigger..."
He goes on to say that it would be a good thing to bring Tigger down and "make Tigger feel Small and Sad for just five minutes".
Pooh and Piglet are convinced by Rabbit's logic and they go about it. Roo is picked up along the way. But what happens is that Pooh, Piglet and Rabbit get lost. Tigger explains to Roo that there's a funny things about Tiggers -- they never get lost! Eventually Tigger sets off to find his three lost friends. Pooh and Piglet find their way home through Pooh listening to his 12 pots of honey at home on his shelf. But Rabbit, insistent on his own way, get even more lost. Eventually, Tigger finds Rabbit....a very changed Rabbit:
"And the Small and Sorry Rabbit rushed through the mist at the noise,and it suddenly turned into Tigger; a Friendly Tigger, a Grand Tigger, a Large and Helpful Tigger, a Tigger who bounced, if he bounced at all, in just the beautiful way a Tigger ought to bounce"
I have always remembered this incident at Pooh Corner because it taught me early in life to be myself, to treasure my uniqueness and to not allow others to bring me down because they feel insecure. The same applies to us as adults. Look around you. Who around you tries to control you and your success? Who around you tries to stop you from bouncing? Who tries to throw negative energy, statements and actions your way? Those people feel dark, "small and sorry" inside and want you to join them.
I have been there. Over my lifetime I have encountered people who could not bear it that I always found something to smile about, something to be positive about -- and that even if things went horribly wrong, they soon went wonderfully right because that was the kind of energy I put out.
Once, I traveled by airplane to participate in a spirituality exhibition. I was supposed to be picked up at he airport, but there was a very spiritually dark woman there who I had once tried to befriend. We lived in the same city and could have become great friends but she was a Rabbit, wanting to be in control and she would do dark competitive things to others, then wonder why she had no actual friends who KNEW her. I wished her well in my head and realized we would never be on the same upward path. I was heading more intensely into my coaching career and I needed to keep my focus there.
For this particular event, she was also going and had arrived earlier than me but did not want me to participate because she felt I outshone her. To try to "jab" me she convinced my host not to pick me up at the airport. I was told when I got to the airport, to take find and take the subway system out to the suburbs. The next morning before the exhibition we would then go do some activities. I had a number of bags and ended up not only missing my stop, when I did get off, I left a crucial bag on the subway car. Wonderfully my bag was almost immediately turned into lost and found! But then the next day, things got wild. Instead of being able to go have the fun morning that was planned, we (including my Pooh host and the Rabbit person who connived to prevent me from being picked up at the airport), were forced to spend 3-4 hours retrieving my bag from the transportation company. I was in good spirits and so very pleased at getting my bag returned immediately and intact. But as I reflected after getting home, the others around me were desperately sad, frustrated, and one person was roiling with dark anger over being unable to control everyone. Over the course of that weekend she not only tried to have me abandoned at the airport, she slapped another woman in the face, bashed into me at a restaurant hoping to knock me over, made racist remarks, and behaved darkly all weekend. I noticed the shift in energy when I got in the car at the airport for my drive to my next destination.
I was Tigger that entire weekend and never got lost. I kept my integrity, my ethics, my intentions and my focus on success and a positive path even when my Rabbit convinced Pooh to try to lose me in the woods. I knew then, as I know now, that in order to be successful I did not need to take anything from anyone -- and I was right.
I have gone on to achieve my goals of becoming a coach, and spiritual advisor, of living in two different countries, of (working towards) a Ph.D. in Psychology, and some other things. Like Tigger, I kept bouncing and never let her or anyone else pull me down.
If you are to keep to YOUR calling, and stay on YOUR path, you must remember that like Tigger, even if someone deviously plots to take you into dangerous woods and lose you there, you will never get lost. Why? Because you will remember your calling and get back on your path and notice lovely things in the woods along the way....as you bounce your way on your journey! Start practicing being a Tigger - unique, special, directed, positive and progressively moving forward! Abundance comes easily and effortlessly to Tiggers. Positive thinking comes easily to Tiggers and has a visible effect. Great success comes to Tiggers.
You have so much to offer the world -- it will take all your Tiggerness to achieve it. If you know the tune, here is a great song to sing to keep your Tiggerness in mind:
The wonderful thing about Tiggers
Is Tiggers are wonderful things.
Their tops are made of rubbers
The bottoms are made of springs.
They're Bouncy,
Flouncy,
Trouncy,
Pouncy,
Fun, fun, fun, fun, FUN!!!
The wonderful thing about Tiggers
Is I'm the only one
I'm the only one !
If you want to work with me on empowering and improving your life through coaching -- bringing out your unique and wonderful Tiggerness -- contact me.
To your success!
Barrett
Copyright © LBPI/Healing Universe
L. Barrett Powell is an international coach and cultural trainer/consultant with an academic background and experience in psychology, theology and journalism. Barrett's focus is on Success Coaching incorporating the Law of Attraction. She lives and works with individuals and inter-cultural organizations in the USA and Europe as a coach, coordinator and trainer. Contact her by email.