Staying On the Rails No Matter What

This post from Headrush (Link: Creating Passionate Users: Most classroom learning sucks.) reminded me of a post I've been planning to write about a children's story that illustrates how society at large tries to prevent individuals from thinking for themselves or taking the unbeaten path in their work and personal lives.

If you're my age, most likely you remember Little Golden Books from your childhood -- The Poky Little Puppy, Tawny Scrawny Lion, Scuffy the Tugboat, etc. (I'm praying right now that you're not thinking, "Gee, I've never heard of those. How old is she??!!!) I bought a set of Little Golden Books for my son a while back because I thought it would be fun to read him the same stories that were read to me when I was little. One of the books, called "Tootle", really threw me for a loop.

The story is about a little locomotive named Tootle. In a town called Lower Trainswitch, Tootle attends a school for engines, where all baby locomotives are taught how to be big locomotives. They learn lessons in Whistle Blowing, Stopping for a Red Flag Waving and more. Most importantly, the young trains are told that they will never amount to anything unless they get "100 A+ in Staying on the Rails No Matter What". Tootle, of course, wants to be the best train ever so he works hard and practices all the various lessons. But one day, while out practicing Staying on the Rails No Matter What, he sees a horse and decides to race it. Near the end of the race, he jumps off the tracks so he can keep up with the horse. He ends up hanging out with the horse in the meadow and really enjoys himself, even though he knows he's not supposed to leave the rails. Days pass, with Tootle secretly spending more and more time off the rails to dance in fields of buttercups, observe green frogs, play with daisies and chase butterflies. In the story, he's never happier than when he's in the meadow.

Eventually, the villagers of Lower Trainswitch and the school administrators learn that Tootle has been leaving the tracks. They devise a plan to hide in the meadow and raise red flags in front of him every where he turns, since trains always stop for red flags. They know this will make him miserable, and change his opinion forever of leaving the rails. As the plan is enacted, there is an illustration in the book of Tootle crying, because everywhere he turns in his beloved meadow, people are hiding behind trees and bushes waving red flags. He ends up deciding never to go into the meadow again, saying "There is nothing but red flags for locomotives that get off their tracks."

That story, written by Gertrude Crampton and published in 1945, has been read by millions of children. And it is played out every day in the world when people try to keep others quiet, encourage them to behave, play by the "rules", draw within the lines and follow the right path (as if there was only one right path). It's probably not much of a stretch for you to imagine an entire department/family/company/society conspiring to keep you from doing something different. It happens to all of us. I remember reading this out loud to my son and, mortified, thinking I'd never read it to him again. Because whatever it is that the rest of the world expects him to be or do, I want him to do whatever makes him happy. Rails need not apply.

Comments

[Bruce DeBoer]

I too have put some thought into whether or not to stay from the rails and what to teach children. I think there is a key element that becomes very important once rail diversion begins >>>> judgement! Naturally, intelligence helps too so that decisions are of high quality. i.e. If you're going to make judgements of the quality that Dairy Queen used when deciding that "Brazier" was a good food descriptor - I'd suggest staying on the rail is a much better idea.

[Andy Havens]

I have "Tootles," too, and had the same issue. On the Myers/Briggs scale, I'm a huge non-judger. Off the charts.

That being said, I remember one December back in college, watching the claymation "Rudolph" Christmas special with a bunch of friends in the dorms. We were tipping back a few and making generally merry as exams were just about over and we were all mostly heading home for a long holiday. During the segment about the Island of Misfit Toys, one of the gang started coming up with additional Misfit Toy ideas that maybe... shouldn't ever get invited off the island. Like "Rat Poison Gum-Ball Machine" and the doll with fangs. The roller skates that couldn't stop. The 10-pound super ball. We got increasingly hysterical. Clearly there are toys that are too "misfitted" for play.

Obviously we need a balance between creativity and judgement. But I think that Tootles is both a dumb book, and that trains should stay on the track. And that Brazier is a dumb name.

[Katherine Stone]

Considering the coincidence of the awful derailment in California, let me say for clarity's sake that I don't mean to suggest trains shouldn't stay on their tracks. But Tootle wasn't meant to be a train in the traditional sense, as he clearly seemed much happier doing other things. It might have been better for him to figuratively leave the rails ... as it sometimes might be better for us to do the things we believe in and have passion for, rather than what we think everyone expects us to do.