Okay, confession time. I am a closet "Winnie the Pooh" fan. He's one of my heroes. Be honest. Who else could put on a shirt three sizes two small, eat all the time with a constantly swelling belly, hang out with all those misfits and still have such a positive outlook on life?


Look at 'em. There was Eeyore ("nobody cares about the donkey"). Wow, talk about a "downer". This guy could find dark shadows on the sun. And, yet, I love the guy (can you call a donkey a guy?). He pulls no punches, never shies away from sharing exactly how he feels--which is usually three heart beats short of a coma.


Then there is rabbit. I think I used to date a girl that was just like rabbit. Always busy, always moving, never quiet. Rabbit wears me out.


Piglet is a ray of sunshine. Timid and shy and yet always able to bring a little sunshine to the rest of the crew from the "Hundred Acres Woods." Poor thing just couldn't stay out of trouble but you would never find a more loyal friend. Just ask Pooh.


(Nice segue to the hero, huh?) So...here he is. The rotund leader of a motley crew. Each with their own set of quirks. Each with their own set of contributions to the fun. None more important than the other. No wonder they called the place "enchanted."


The beautiful thing about creator A. A. Milne's laughable characters is this--as different and odd as all of them may be, no one cares. No one cares that gopher can't see, that owl's "wisdom" is short-sighted or that Tigger can't be still. They just "do life together." (For those of you Ridgeview readers out there, you know where this is headed now). Together. Can you imagine anyone of these characters handling just one story line alone? Can you see Piglet taking on heffalumps or woosles without his fearless friend Tigger by his side? Can you imagine Pooh escaping the jams (literal and figurative) that he finds himself in without the other inhabitants of the woods?

What about you? What keeps you from doing life with others? What's your excuse? Maybe you're like Eeyore and you think no one cares about the trouble you're going through. Bet you're wrong. Maybe you're just a little timid like Piglet or a little too busy like Rabbit. Let me assure you of something. You were not intended to face your life alone. God made you for life with others--no matter what part of the woods you live in. No matter what your life is like, it can be made better by doing it with others. They don't have to look like you (Christopher Robin never cared) or dress like you, they just have to know you care. Give it a try and see if your life doesn't become a little more enchanted.