The Journey: Big Panda and Tiny Dragon
In James Norbury’s second book, The Journey: Big Panda and Tiny Dragon, Tiny Dragon searches for purpose beyond the mountain temple that he and Big Panda have always called their home. This story is another relatable and meaningful journey as our favorite and familiar characters set off into the unknown once again to discover what was already in them all along, and that change may not be so scary after all.
Norbury paints the scene of the beautiful but worn mountain temple where Big Panda and Tiny Dragon live, and their daily adventures there. From exploring the forest to cups of tea on a starlit night, the companions seem to have a very fulfilling life, until the day Tiny Dragon begins to feel like there is something missing. I love the support that Big Panda shows his tiny friend from the very beginning, and how he happily agrees to go on this journey of self discovery with him, no questions asked. Big Panda says it best when he speaks of change:
“Change…even if you don’t know where it will lead, is better than stagnation. In some ways, the mind is much like a garden. It needs your care, attention and effort. Left to its own devices it will soon become overrun with weeds. And where there are too many weeds, flowers cannot grow” (Norbury, 26-27).
There is a lot of symbolism in Tiny Dragon’s prized tea set, the desire to hold onto the past as well as the importance of cherishing and savoring special things without letting material matters consume us. Once again, Big Panda is wise when he says:
“There is nothing wrong with enjoying the fruits of the world, we just need to make sure we do not lose ourselves in them” (Norbury, 37).
The themes of fear and uncertainty follow the main characters throughout the entire book, but in the simple tasks of building a raft together and toughing out the rain and the cold, Big Panda and Tiny Dragon always find comfort and hope, which is an inspiration to all who are going through difficult journeys of their own.
Being internally lost is depicted beautifully by Norbury’s symbolic use of the physical journey the characters are on. They have never been this far away from home before and don’t know where they are, and Tiny Dragon has lost everything that is dear and familiar to him and feels afraid and more adrift than ever. A breaking point for Tiny Dragon is when he inevitably loses his prized possession, his tea set, in a storm while crossing the river. Big Panda reminds his tiny friend that acceptance is the first step when it comes to finding peace, and that nothing is ever in our control except for how we respond to the things that happen to us and around us.
Safe on the other side of the river at last, Big Panda and Tiny Dragon experience pure gratitude for the simple things once again with a fresh perspective, and Big Panda reminds his friend of the importance of embracing change, and the importance of friendship as we grow and change on our life journeys. I resonate with the equally beautiful and painful truth of this lesson, and it did break my heart when Tiny Dragon “felt alone and empty in a world that meant nothing” (Norbury, 107). But through another dark storm Tiny Dragon makes it through, with his dear friend at his side.
I loved when Tiny Dragon sees the suspended leaf and he recognizes the beauty in all the pain in our vast universe. A great lesson is learned here, and my heart soared for Tiny Dragon when he found a new makeshift tea set, with all the cracks and blemishes that represent everything Tiny Dragon had gone through to get there, to his new home with his best friend. Tiny Dragon says it best at the end of the story when he’s talking about letting go of the pain of the things he can’t change:
“It seems that the more I unclench my hand…the more the world seems to place into it” (Norbury, 141).
There is so much more that I could say about this book, but part of the wonder is the journey that is reading it yourself. As always, James Norbury weaves the spiritual with the inspirational in such a simple yet unbelievably beautiful way that never ceases to linger long after I read the final words of the book.
Reference
Norbury, James. The Journey: Big Panda and Tiny Dragon. Mandala, 2022.