Walt Disney's Mary Poppins

Mary Poppins is, along with Pollyanna, Walt Disney's masterpiece.

I just looked up why P. L. Travers, author of the original book, hated Walt's movie.

It was because everything that was good in the movie was put there by Walt, not by her.

Travers thought Walt's Mary Poppins was too nice.

Her Mary Poppins did not want to feed the birds.

Her Mary Poppins wanted the birds to be killed and made into a pie.

It is Walt's Mary Poppins, along with Walt's Pollyanna, that taught American children's movies and television to love.

It is Walt's Mary Poppins that led to The Secret of NIMH and E.T., Sesame Street and Reading Rainbow.

It was Walt who wanted to feed the birds.

What did it mean to Walt to feed the birds?

To help people.

'Feed the birds, tuppence a bag'

Tuppence.

Two pennies.

Next to nothing.

Help people. It takes so very little, next to nothing, to cheer someone up, to help them cross the street.

Three dollars for a meal to someone who is hungry.

Or, what the world so deeply needs, which is a little bit of Love.

I don't care for P. L. Travers's Mary Poppins.

I prefer Walt's Mary Poppins.

I prefer Love to discipline.

Discipline gave us Hitler and Stalin.

I prefer Love.

Discipline is a means to an end.

It is worthless without Love.

Give me Walt's Mary Poppins any day.

I have no ill will to ms. Travers.

I hope that one day, wherever she is, she will understand Walt's Mary Poppins.

For it's Walt's Mary Poppins that we need.

And it was Walt's Mary Poppins that made Mary Poppins important.

We don't need a strict Mary Poppins.

It is what Walt put into the story that made it special.

It is the message of love that Walt put into the story that made it important.

Before that, Mary Poppins was just an obscure children's book character.

Walt could have taken another story and put the same message of love into it.

For it is Walt's message of love that makes Mary Poppins important.

And it is Walt's Mary Poppins that we need.

God loves you!

Sincerely,

David S. Annderson

P.S. The message of love that Walt put into his movie was sent out into the world long ago by Jesus, and Confucius, and Plato, and many others. You don't have to take Walt's word on it! Or mine!