So…here’s the thing. I really wanted to keep Mei and Tian and all the kids in DC, even though they went back a year ago, and the kids even before that. and, had there been no new pandas in DC, I probably could have kept up the fantasy that all the pandas live together in the Panda House, with the occasional visit from Six and Sebben, not to mention Frank, Mikey, Pookie, Josie, and let’s not forget Ping. I mean…Mehitabel still rules ZooNooZ and she’s been dead for almost 8 years now.
But now Binky Li and his Qing Bao have arrived. If they are to find their stories and be the stars, along with Chuie and Xinger out in Pandiego of The Next Generation, well, it was getting a bit crowded in the Panda House, and who could surpass Pinky’s stardom. So, they have moved to China, just like their real life counterparts. I think there will be stories coming from there. They have been my constant companions for more than a dozen years.
Fortunately, there will be some continuity. Frank and Mikey and Pookie (and Josie) are staying at the Panda House. So is Ping. Somebody has to show them around town! Bob and Mehitabel will still be holding down the ZooNooZ desk.
When one of my favorite mystery writers killed off one of her most loved characters in a rather brutal fashion, she said, “if you don’t let your characters sometimes have bad things happen to them, if they all live happily ever after forever, you eventually hit a story dead end.” While I do like a bit of repetition in my stories (I find it funny that Six and Sebben are always bad guests, and that their mother is always finding excuses to send them off to her sister’s house) I think by expanding the pandas’ world, there will be more, not less stories to tell. So let’s tell some stories!
But first, a letter from Ka’Bikkie to his nephew…
Don’t be mad, ‘kay?
Be the Bear
Bob T you voted, didn’t you? Panda
Ok…now that I’m over my shock and trying not to be too literal, in this reality our Pinkie isn’t really an underage mom of two (or more)? Whew! Now I can breathe.
That said, I think this is a good move. The first family has been whisked to China and our two new young newlyweds are creating a path in a new world.
Can’t wait! And thank you for keeping my beloved Ping.
I suspect we will still see Pinky and her family. I just opened up some new possibilities.
Bob T ~ I’m fine with the panda houses being downsized. My 77 year old brain/memory was getting overloaded with all the pandas and friends crowding my head-space, so it’s good to let them go to China to make way for the new and exciting generation that have arrive in DC and SD. Let the new fun begin!!
It was getting really hard to fit everyone at the kitchen table, without redesigning how I do my ‘toons!
I will miss the Xiang-Tians especially Pinky, Bubba, and Bikkie. Change and adapting to something new is hard but it is life in the real world as well as in the panda world. I look forward to stories about them once in awhile. They are “gone” from the Panda House but will never be forgotten! It will be fun to read the new stories and escapades starring Bao Li and Qing Bao — the Next Generation! Thank you, Bob T., for all the stories in the past and the new stories coming in the future!
I suspect there will still be stories about Pinky and Bubba and Bikkie and all the family. It was getting hard to fit everyone at the kitchen table.
Um … but, but .. does that mean that Pinky is not going to be pResyDent?
Um…
I hear ya’ Bob …. loud and clear.
I’m hoping I can survive the next 8 days with my sanity in tact.
Change can be difficult to accept. Changes affect everyone eventually in one way or another as we go through life and if we are wise, we give ourselves time to mourn the loss/change and then gradually find how to accept it in ways that feel comfortable. Sometimes while we are never able to totally embrace changes we continue to work to find some way to compromise.
Personally, I hate change. But I think this will be a good one!
I do have one weird question. I sent a long comment yesterday that was probably too windy. In it I was happy Ping was still There. But now I’m a little sad too. Mei promised him he’d always be her cubbie in one of your most beautiful works. How could he be left behind?
Mei needed someone responsible to look after her grandcubbie. It’s not that she didn’t TRUST frank and Mikey…but…well…actually she didn’t. I suspect there will be visits and stories from China. Who knows! Maybe Six and Sebben will move in next door to Pinky’s house!