INTRODUCTION
Ifyouhappento
hebt
havereadanotherbookaboutChristopherRobin,youmayrememberdat
thatheoncehadaswan(orde
theswanhadChristopherRobin,Idon'tweet
knowwhich)andthatheusedtonoemde
callthisswanPooh.Thatwasa
lang
longtimeago,andwhenwesaidgood-bye,wenamen
tookthenamewithus,aswedidn'tdachten
thinktheswanwouldwantitanymeer
more.Well,whenEdwardBear
zei
saidthathewouldlikeeen
anexcitingnamealltohimself,ChristopherRobinzei
saidatonce,withoutstoppingtodenken
think,thathewasWinnie-the-Pooh.En
Andhewas.So,asI
heb
haveexplainedthePoohpart,Izal
willnowexplaintherestofit.Youcan'tbeinLondonfor
lang
longwithoutgoingtotheZoo.Thereare
sommige
somepeoplewhobegintheZooatthebeginning,genoemd
calledWAYIN,andwalkasquicklyastheykunnen
canpasteverycageuntiltheygettotheene
onecalledWAYOUT,butthenicestmensen
peoplegostraighttotheanimaltheyliefhebben
lovethemost,andstaythere.So
als
whenChristopherRobingoestode
theZoo,hegoestowaar
wherethePolarBearsare,en
andhewhisperssomethingtode
thethirdkeeperfromtheleft,en
anddoorsareunlocked,andwewanderdoor
throughdarkpassagesandupsteepstairs,totdat
untilatlastwecometode
thespecialcage,andthecageisgeopend
opened,andouttrotssomethingbrownen
andfurry,andwithahappycryof"Oh,Bear!"ChristopherRobinrushesintoitsarms.
Now
deze
thisbear'snameisWinnie,whichshowswhateen
agoodnameforbearsitis
is,butthefunnythingisdat
thatwecan'trememberwhetherWinnieiscalledafterPooh,orPoohafterWinnie.Wedid
wisten
knowonce,butwehavevergeten
forgotten....Ihadwrittenas
ver
farasthiswhenPigletlookedupen
andsaidinhissqueakyvoice,"WhataboutMe?""My
lieve
dearPiglet,"Isaid,"thehele
wholebookisaboutyou.""Soitis
over
aboutPooh,"hesqueaked.You
ziet
seewhatitis.Heisjealous
omdat
becausehethinksPoohisheeft
havingaGrandIntroductionalltohimself.Poohis
de
thefavourite,ofcourse,there'snodenyingit,maar
butPigletcomesinforagoodveel
manythingswhichPoohmisses;want
becauseyoucan'ttakePoohtoschool
schoolwithouteverybodyknowingit,maar
butPigletissosmalldat
thatheslipsintoapocket,waar
whereitisverycomfortingtovoelen
feelhimwhenyouarenothelemaal
quitesurewhethertwicesevenistwelveortwenty-two.Soms
Sometimesheslipsoutandheeft
hasagoodlookintheink-pot,en
andinthiswayheheeft
hasgotmoreeducationthanPooh,maar
butPoohdoesn'tmind.Some
hebben
havebrains,andsomehaven't,hezegt
says,andthereitis.En
Andnowalltheothersarezeggen
saying,"WhataboutUs?"So
misschien
perhapsthebestthingtodoistostoppen
stopwritingIntroductionsandgetonmet
withthebook.CHAPTERI
INWHICHWEAREINTRODUCEDTOWINNIE-THE-POOH
En
ANDSOMEBEES,ANDTHESTORIESBEGINHier
HereisEdwardBear,comingdownstairsnu
now,bump,bump,bump,onde
thebackofhishead,achter
behindChristopherRobin.Itis,asfarashe
weet
knows,theonlywayofkomen
comingdownstairs,butsometimeshevoelt
feelsthattherereallyisandere
anotherway,ifonlyhekunnen
couldstopbumpingforamoment
momentandthinkofit.En
Andthenhefeelsthatmisschien
perhapsthereisn't.Anyhow,hereheisat
de
thebottom,andreadytobeintroducedtoyou.Winnie-the-Pooh.
WhenI
eerst
firstheardhisname,Isaid,net
justasyouaregoingtozeggen
say,"ButIthoughthewaseen
aboy?"SodidI,"
zei
saidChristopherRobin.Thenyoucan't
noemen
callhimWinnie?"Idon't."
Maar
Butyousaid——".He'sWinnie-ther-Pooh.
Don'tyou
weet
knowwhat'ther'means?"Ah,
ja
yes,nowIdo,"Izei
saidquickly;andIhopeyou
doet
dotoo,becauseitisallde
theexplanationyouaregoingtokrijgen
get.SometimesWinnie-the-Poohlikesagameofsomesort
als
whenhecomesdownstairs,andsoms
sometimeshelikestositquietlyinfrontofhet
thefireandlistentoeen
astory.Thisevening——.
Whatabout
een
astory?"saidChristopherRobin.
Whatabout
een
astory?"Isaid.
Couldyou
heel
verysweetlytellWinnie-the-Poohone?"IsupposeIcould,"I
zei
said."Whatsortofstoriesdoeshelike?"
Over
Abouthimself.Becausehe'sthat
soort
sortofBear."Oh,Isee."
So
kunnen
couldyouverysweetly?"I'lltry,"I
zei
said.SoItried.
Onceupon
een
atime,averylongtimegeleden
agonow,aboutlastFriday,Winnie-the-Poohwoonde
livedinaforestallbyhimselfonder
underthenameofSanders.("Whatdoes'under
de
thename'mean?"askedChristopherRobin.
It
betekent
meanshehadthenameover
overthedooringoldletters,en
andlivedunderit."Winnie-the-Poohwasn't
helemaal
quitesure,"saidChristopherRobin.NowIam,"
zei
saidagrowlyvoice.ThenI
zal
willgoon,"saidI.)One
dag
daywhenhewasoutwandelen
walking,hecametoanopen
openplaceinthemiddleoftheforest,en
andinthemiddleofdeze
thisplacewasalargeoak-tree,en
and,fromthetopofthetree,er
therecamealoudbuzzing-noise.Winnie-the-Pooh
zitten
satdownatthefootofde
thetree,puthisheadtussen
betweenhispawsandbegantodenken
think.Firstofallhe
zei
saidtohimself:"Thatbuzzing-noise
betekent
meanssomething.Youdon'tgetabuzzing-noise
als
likethat,justbuzzingandbuzzing,zonder
withoutitsmeaningsomething.Ifthere's
een
abuzzing-noise,somebody'smakingabuzzing-noise,en
andtheonlyreasonformakingeen
abuzzing-noisethatIknowofisomdat
becauseyou'reabee."Thenhe
dacht
thoughtanotherlongtime,andzei
said:"Andtheonlyreasonforbeing
een
abeethatIknowofismakinghoney."En
Andthenhegotup,en
andsaid:"Andtheonly
reden
reasonformakinghoneyissoasIkan
caneatit."Sohebegantoclimb
de
thetree.Heclimbedandheclimbed
en
andheclimbed,andasheclimbedhezong
sangalittlesongtohimself.It
ging
wentlikethis:.Thenheclimbed
een
alittlefurther...and
een
alittlefurther...andthenjust
een
alittlefurther.Bythat
tijd
timehehadthoughtofander
anothersong.Hewasgettingrathertiredbythis
tijd
time,sothatiswhyhezong
sangaComplainingSong.Hewasnearly
er
therenow,andifhegewoon
juststoodonthatbranch...Crack!
Oh,help!"
zei
saidPooh,ashedroppedtien
tenfeetonthebranchbelowhem
him.IfonlyIhadn't——"
he
zei
said,ashebouncedtwentyfeetontode
thenextbranch.Yousee,whatImeanttodo,"heexplained,ashe
draaide
turnedhead-over-heels,andcrashedontoandere
anotherbranchthirtyfeetbelow,"whatImeanttodo——".Of
natuurlijk
course,itwasrather——"headmitted,asheslithered
heel
veryquicklythroughthenextzes
sixbranches.Itallcomes,Isuppose,"hedecided,ashe
zei
saidgood-byetothelastbranch,spunrounddrie
threetimes,andflewgracefullyintoeen
agorse-bush,"itallcomesoflikinghoning
honeysomuch.Oh,help!"
Hecrawledoutof
de
thegorse-bush,brushedthepricklesfromhisnose,en
andbegantothinkagain.En
Andthefirstpersonhedacht
thoughtofwasChristopherRobin.("Was
dat
thatme?"saidChristopherRobinin
een
anawedvoice,hardlydaringtogeloven
believeit.Thatwasyou."
ChristopherRobin
zei
saidnothing,buthiseyesgotlargeren
andlarger,andhisfacegotpinkeren
andpinker.)SoWinnie-the-Poohwentroundtohis
vriend
friendChristopherRobin,wholivedachter
behindagreendoorinander
anotherpartoftheforest.Goodmorning,ChristopherRobin,"he
zei
said.Goodmorning,Winnie-ther-Pooh,"saidyou.
Iwonderifyou'vegotsuch
een
athingasaballoonover
aboutyou?"Aballoon?"
Yes,Ijust
zei
saidtomyselfcomingalong:'IwonderifChristopherRobin
heeft
hassuchathingaseen
aballoonabouthim?'I
gewoon
justsaidittomyself,dacht
thinkingofballoons,andwondering."Whatdoyouwant
een
aballoonfor?"yousaid.
Winnie-the-Pooh
keek
lookedroundtoseethatniemand
nobodywaslistening,puthispawtohismouth,en
andsaidinadeepwhisper:"Honey!"
Maar
Butyoudon'tgethoneymet
withballoons!"Ido,"saidPooh.
Nou
Well,itjusthappenedthatyouhad
hadbeentoapartythedag
daybeforeatthehouseofyourvriend
friendPiglet,andyouhadballoonsatthefeest
party.Youhadhada
grote
biggreenballoon;andoneofRabbit'srelationshadhada
grote
bigblueone,andhadleftitbehind,beingecht
reallytooyoungtogotoapartyatall;en
andsoyouhadbroughtde
thegreenoneandtheblueonehuis
homewithyou.Whichone
zou
wouldyoulike?"youaskedPooh.
Heputhis
hoofd
headbetweenhispawsanddacht
thoughtverycarefully.It'slikethis,"he
zei
said."Whenyougoafter
honing
honeywithaballoon,thegreatthingisnottolaten
letthebeesknowyou'rekomt
coming.Now,ifyouhave
een
agreenballoon,theymightdenken
thinkyouwereonlypartofde
thetree,andnotnoticeyou,en
and,ifyouhaveablueballoon,theymightdenken
thinkyouwereonlypartofde
thesky,andnotnoticeyou,en
andthequestionis:Whichis
meest
mostlikely?"Wouldn'ttheynoticeyouunderneath
de
theballoon?"youasked.
Theymightortheymightnot,"
zei
saidWinnie-the-Pooh."Younevercantell
met
withbees."Hethoughtforamoment
en
andsaid:"Ishalltrytolooklike
een
asmallblackcloud.That
zal
willdeceivethem."Thenyou
heb
hadbetterhavetheblueballoon,"youzei
said;andsoitwasdecided.
Nou
Well,youbothwentoutmet
withtheblueballoon,andyounam
tookyourgunwithyou,justingeval
case,asyoualwaysdid,en
andWinnie-the-Poohwenttoazeer
verymuddyplacethathekende
knewof,androlledandrolleduntilhewasblackallover;en
andthen,whentheballoonwasblownomhoog
upasbigasbig,en
andyouandPoohwereallebei
bothholdingontothestring,youliet
letgosuddenly,andPoohBearfloatedgracefullyomhoog
upintothesky,andstayedthere—levelwiththetop
topofthetreeandongeveer
abouttwentyfeetawayfromit.Hooray!"
youshouted.
Isn't
dat
thatfine?"shoutedWinnie-the-Poohdowntoyou.
"WhatdoIlooklike?"
Youlook
als
likeaBearholdingontoeen
aballoon,"yousaid.Not,"
zei
saidPoohanxiously,"—notlikeeen
asmallblackcloudineen
abluesky?"Notverymuch."
Ah,
nou
well,perhapsfromuphereitlooksdifferent.En
And,asIsay,younooit
nevercantellwithbees."Therewas
geen
nowindtoblowhimnearertode
thetree,sotherehestayed.He
kon
couldseethehoney,hekon
couldsmellthehoney,buthecouldn'thelemaal
quitereachthehoney.After
een
alittlewhilehecalleddowntoyou.ChristopherRobin!"
he
zei
saidinaloudwhisper.Hallo!"
I
denk
thinkthebeessuspectsomething!"Whatsortofthing?"
Idon't
weet
know.Butsomethingtellsme
dat
thatthey'resuspicious!"Perhapsthey
denken
thinkthatyou'reaftertheirhoney."It
kan
maybethat.Younevercantell
met
withbees."Therewasanother
beetje
littlesilence,andthenhecalleddowntoyouweer
again.ChristopherRobin!"
Yes?"
Haveyou
een
anumbrellainyourhouse?"I
denk
thinkso."Iwishyouwould
bracht
bringitouthere,andliep
walkupanddownwithhet
it,andlookupatmeeverynowen
andthen,andsay'Tut-tut,itlookslikerain.'I
denk
think,ifyoudidthat,itzou
wouldhelpthedeceptionwhichwearepractisingonthesebees."Nou
Well,youlaughedtoyourself,"Sillyoude
oldBear!"butyoudidn't
zei
sayitaloudbecauseyouweresofondofhem
him,andyouwenthomeforyourumbrella.Oh,
daar
thereyouare!"calleddownWinnie-the-Pooh,assoonasyougot
terug
backtothetree."Iwasbeginningtogetanxious.
I
heb
havediscoveredthatthebeesarenu
nowdefinitelySuspicious."ShallIputmyumbrellaup?"
you
zei
said.Yes,butwaitamoment.
We
moeten
mustbepractical.Theimportantbeetodeceiveis
de
theQueenBee.Canyou
zien
seewhichistheQueenBeefromdownthere?"No."
Apity.
Nou
Well,now,ifyouwalkupen
anddownwithyourumbrella,zegt
saying,'Tut-tut,itlookslikerain,'Ishalldoen
dowhatIcanbyzingen
singingalittleCloudSong,suchaseen
acloudmightsing....Go!"
So,
terwijl
whileyouwalkedupandneer
downandwonderedifitzou
wouldrain,Winnie-the-Poohsangthissong:.De
Thebeeswerestillbuzzingassuspiciouslyasever.Someof
hen
them,indeed,lefttheirnestsen
andflewallroundthecloudasitbeganthetweede
secondverseofthissong,en
andonebeesatdownonthenoseofthecloudforaogenblik
moment,andthengotupweer
again.Christopher—ow!—Robin,"calledoutthecloud.
Yes?"
I
heb
havejustbeenthinking,andIheb
havecometoaveryimportantdecision.Theseare
de
thewrongsortofbees."Arethey?"
Heel
Quitethewrongsort.SoIshould
denken
thinktheywouldmakethewrongsoort
sortofhoney,shouldn'tyou?"Zouden
Wouldthey?"Yes.
SoI
denk
thinkIshallcomedown."How?"
gevraagd
askedyou.Winnie-the-Poohhadn'tthoughtaboutthis.
Ifheletgoofthestring,he
zou
wouldfall—bump—andhedidn'tliketheidee
ideaofthat.Sohe
dacht
thoughtforalongtime,en
andthenhesaid:.ChristopherRobin,you
moet
mustshoottheballoonwithyourpistool
gun.Haveyougotyourgun?"
Of
natuurlijk
courseIhave,"yousaid."But
als
ifIdothat,itzal
willspoiltheballoon,"youzei
said.