Eeyore – Why You Need Some of His Attitude on The Road

I was one of THOSE Moms!  I used Disney videos to babysit my kids so I could do things like fold laundry and make dinner.  As a result of listening to Disney videos in the background of my house chores, I got to know them pretty well.  At one time, I was able to sing all of the words to Davey Crockett, knew all of the words to “Under the Sea”, and knew when “The Wiggles” came on in the morning so that my son would be mesmerized for 30 minutes and I could clean up the breakfast mess.  Really, without the Disney videos and Disney Channel, the house would have been a wreck, we would have all worn dirty clothes, and we probably would have starved.  Winnie the Pooh was a favorite of my kids’.  As a result, I also got to know Winnie the Pooh and all of his friends pretty well too.  My Winnie the Pooh character is Eeyore.  You might think Eeyore and RVing are an odd combination.  I hope to convince you otherwise. 

First off, I believe that Eeyore is the most underrated cartoon character – ever.  (Well, at least up until about the year 2004.  They may have invented a more underrated cartoon character since then, but my kids went to school and I wouldn’t know.)  I have heard people say that he is a downer, clinically depressed, and brings a dark cloud with him everywhere he goes.  I believe those people have only ever looked at pictures of Eeyore. They’ve never bothered to listen to him.  Have you listened to Eeyore?

Eeyore is probably one of the most flexible, roll-with-the-punches, characters out there.  His house collapses into the river and floats away.  What does he say?   I couldn’t find the exact quote, but it was something to the effect of “I guess it was time to move anyway.”  Did he sit on the shores of the river and pout?  No, he saw that there was an opportunity to find a new place to live and got on with finding his new digs.

How about this quote from Eeyore, “Funny thing about the rain is that it always stops eventually.”  Think about that.  When was the last time you were on a RV trip (or any day) and it was raining or you were just having a day where things weren’t going your way.  If you think about all of the things going wrong, it’ll just annoy you more and cause stress.  If you were to think about it as having an end, it might not look so bad, right?  At the end of a rough day on the road, I am always thankful for it ending and getting to have dinner, or having a glass of wine, or having some ice cream, or just going to bed and have a do-over the next day.

Here’s another Eeyore-ism that I love.  “They’re funny things, Accidents. You never have them till you’re having them.”  This is a lot like how we learned everything we know about RVing – by making mistakes (aka accidents).  If you’ve followed my blog a while, you’ll know that we ruined an awning getting it stuck in a tree, have had to back the trailer at the Canadian border, broken things that we haven’t latched correctly, and have had a host of other “accidents.”  This is how we learn.  We are currently on an extended trip and we’ve learned a whole slew of new things about pacing ourselves, paying attention to where an RV park is on a map in relation to area attractions, and how early we need to get up in the morning so we can avoid the 8:00 dinner rule while on the road.   

One of the greatest inventors of all time, Thomas Edison would tell you the same thing.  While visiting his winter estate on this trip, I saw a quote from him where he started it, “I am always afraid of things that work the first time…”  He also said, “I have not failed, I’ve found 10,000 ways that won’t work.”  We can all learn from Eeyore and Thomas Edison about “accidents” or mistakes.  They can’t be 100% avoided and they teach us what to do differently the next time … or the next time after the time we try do the same thing the same way again again …. (Sometimes we take a few times to learn).  While RVing is arguably one of the best ways to travel and see the country, it is fraught with challenges and opportunities for “accidents.”  How you look at them will make all the difference in how your trip goes.

“Thanks, but I’d rather stay an Eeyore.” Eeyore wants to be Eeyore.  How many times have you walked around the RV park and wished you had those neat chairs or that Blackstone grill?  How many times have you watched the guy down the row back in and get it right on the first try after it took you about 27 times to back in and get it straight?   Giving yourself a break and doing things the way that works is OK.   There’s no one way to do this RVing thing.  What you probably don’t know is, the people with all of the great gear have been at it 17 years and had dysfunctional equipment when they started.  And the guy that backed in and got it right the first time?  He’s a truck driver and backs trucks to loading docks all day every day.

  Another sweet Eeyore take-away, “A little consideration, a little thought for others, makes all the difference.” Of course it does!  This applies to RVing on so many levels – driving, parking, and at the campground.  This actually could solve a lot of the word’s problems as well, but that’s a blog for another day…

Eeyore’s flexibility, self-awareness, and ability to recover from mishaps make him the ideal road trip buddy.  Bring his attitude along on your next trip!  I’ll leave you with this last quote, “I might have known,” said Eeyore. “After all, one can’t complain. I have my friends.”  Whether your friends are on your trip or not, it’s a blessing to have them … and remember that you do.  Counting your blessings is always a good idea – especially when you’re traveling.  Happy travels!

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