Petunia

By Roger Duvoisin

Copyright 1950

While walking through the meadow one day, silly goose Petunia comes across something she has never seen before – a book.  She remembers hearing someone say, “He who owns Books and loves them is wise”.  Petunia makes the assumption that since she has a book to carry around, she also has the accompanying wisdom.  Proud Petunia now struts through the barnyard, dispensing advice to all the other animals.   

When Ida the hen comes to her for help in counting her chicks to make sure all nine are there, Petunia counts 3 sets of 3 chicks, and says that 3 x 3 is six, and six is much more than nine.  Poor Ida worries because she doesn’t know how she can take care of so many chicks.  

More trouble ensues as Petunia dispenses her “wisdom” throughout the barnyard.

It takes a disastrous encounter with a box of firecrackers that is mistakenly read as “candies” to finally put Petunia in her place.  Petunia’s pride and wisdom exploded with the firecrackers and she comes to the realization that “It was not enough to carry wisdom under my wing.  I must put it in my mind and heart.  And to do that I must learn to read.”

The importance of literacy is of course the key lesson here.

I take another important lesson from Petunia’s story.  Just because someone has the book – or the degree – or the status – that makes them seem wise, don’t blindly take their advice.  We can’t be experts on everything, so we need to sometimes lean on the wisdom of others.  We should, however, learn to be discerning and not assume that wisdom automatically comes with status.