The Hospital Visit

Sophie and Sebastian

One day, Bert decides to do something nice for Fran, but it doesn’t all go according to plan. Fortunately, Bert has some amazing friends who are more than happy to visit him at the hospital …

Illustration by Will van Delft

Episode 18 of the podcast contains a lot of allusions to Winnie the Pooh, so I thought it might be fun to point out where the story of “The Hospital Visit” reveals a debt to A. A. Milne’s famous children’s classic.

Obviously Bert’s grumpiness is reminiscent of Eeyore, just as Sophie’s innocent questions and responses reflect Pooh’s lack of awareness. Then there’s the notion of bringing balloons as a present to cheer someone up. But perhaps the most specific allusion is the play on the word “ambush.” Here are the two passages side by side:

“Ambush?” said Sophie, “What does that mean?” “It means that someone surprises you and you fall into a bush.” Bert did not look very happy. “Oh,” said Sophie. “I didn’t know there was a word just for that. What if you happen to fall on a flower?”

The Hospital Visit

“My dear Pooh,” said Owl in his superior way, “don’t you know what an Ambush is?” … “An Ambush,” said Owl, “is a sort of Surprise.” “So is a gorse-bush sometimes,” said Pooh.

Winnie the Pooh

I’ve taught Winnie the Pooh so often that it’s hard to write for children without adopting the same perspective, a perspective that is simultaneously nonsensical, ironic, and nostalgic. It’s a unique mixture that you won’t find in many other children’s books.

Here’s one more place where I had Winnie the Pooh in the back of my mind:

“What happened?” Sophie said, “What did you do?” “Take a guess,” said Bert, “Do you think I’m taking a nap in a rose bush? Do you think I’m trying out a new form of acupuncture? Or could it be that I was trying to do something nice and happened to have a fall?”

The Hospital Visit

“Eeyore, what are you doing there [floating in the river]?” said Rabbit. “I’ll give you three guesses, Rabbit. Digging holes in the ground? Wrong. Leaping from branch to branch of a young oak-tree? Wrong. Waiting for somebody to help me out of the river? Right. Give Rabbit time, and he’ll always get the answer.”

Winnie the Pooh

I love Eeyore’s sarcasm, and I think young kids get it too. It’s too bad many people no longer read the original Winnie the Pooh but are satisfied by those short spin-off Disney books that always end with a sappy moral. There is nothing quite like the original Winnie the Pooh.