Goodbye, Lao Peng

Author: Lü Lina
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-07-01
Features: Following the "I Am Great" Early Childhood Picture Book (Volume 1), this new "I Am Great" Early Childhood Picture Book (Volume 2) is created by a writer, painter, early childhood education expert, psychologist, and editor. It includes 10 fresh and engaging original stories, 10 profound expert introductions, 10 social health units, 310 humorous and stimulating illustrations, and 40 well-designed parent-child games. More details are not needed—just take a look at the expert introductions for each book!
Expert Introduction Excerpt: Xiao Nuo ran out just like this, and he didn’t say to Lao Peng, "I’m going out!" Lao Peng was naturally a little unhappy—otherwise, why would the flying eagle have a stern face and look fierce? But Lao Peng didn’t stop him. He didn’t yell in anger, "If you go out, don’t come back!" Instead, he followed quietly, staying far behind. Xiao Nuo didn’t know how many difficulties or hardships he would face along the way, but Lao Peng did. When a pony wants to explore the world, how can the front door of the house hold it back? Xiao Nuo is every one of our children. Every time they explore the world, they truly gain a "multicolored bird" feather—it represents experience, courage, knowledge, or even speed. This is a wealth that many children who are always held tightly by adults at home can hardly obtain.
A famous English children’s poem goes like this:
"I never did, I never did, I never did like ‘Take care, dear!’
I never did, I never did, I never did want ‘Hold my hand’;
I never did, I never did, I never did think much of ‘Not up there, dear!’
It’s no good saying it. They don’t understand."
I absolutely, I absolutely, I absolutely hate hearing "Be careful, little dear!"
I absolutely, I absolutely, I absolutely don’t want to "hold my hand tight";
I absolutely, I absolutely, I absolutely won’t listen to "Don’t go up there, little dear!"
It’s no good saying it. They don’t understand.
Xiao Nuo ran out just like this, and he didn’t say to Lao Peng, "I’m going out!" Lao Peng was naturally a little unhappy—otherwise, why would the flying eagle have a stern face and look fierce? But Lao Peng didn’t stop him. He didn’t yell in anger, "If you go out, don’t come back!" Instead, he followed quietly, staying far behind. Xiao Nuo didn’t know how many difficulties or even dangers he would face along the way, but Lao Peng did. Without these difficulties and dangers, Lao Peng might never have said, "You can’t go east, you can’t go west, you can’t go south, but you can go north." But since every pony always longs to step outside the door, trotting happily and hearing the sound of its hooves, like a big horse, even galloping at full speed, can the front door of the house really hold it back? Then why must we scold the pony that has already stepped outside the door and turn it back? Lao Peng’s method is truly wise.
Lao Peng’s leaves and the drips, the stinging beak of the eagle and his anxious neighs, also made our eyes moist, revealing the eternal love of parents. And those sparkling little stones and the fleeting shadows of beautiful birds—can’t they also be understood as carefully arranged by Lao Peng, guiding and encouraging hope? Xiao Nuo is every one of our children. Every time they explore the world, they truly gain a "multicolored bird" feather—it represents experience, courage, knowledge, or even speed, a wealth that many children who are always held tightly by adults at home can hardly obtain.
Xiao Nuo, who went out and then followed Lao Peng back, is no longer the Xiao Nuo before he left. Growing up happens in these moments. We shouldn’t see Xiao Nuo’s story as just one time in his entire childhood, but rather as something that can be understood as "everyday." He didn’t go to the real North Pole or South Pole, or to the many places east and west; he just left home for a place nearby where he could play, among a group of older children who were playing soccer.
The story of Xiao Nuo and the thought of leaving you might arise every day. We shouldn’t always say, "Hold my hand!" Instead, learn to say: Go, child.