Editor’s note: Story has been corrected to clarify that the Senate’s children’s story is a brochure, not a book.
As Canada’s Senate determines how to deal with Sen. Don Meredith’s past relationship with a 16-year-old girl, and removed Sen. Lynn Beyak from a committee following her controversial comments about residential schools – they’ve also released a brochure styled like a children’s picture book that describes their role in very positive terms.
READ MORE: ‘Nothing short of expulsion’: Senate grapples with new scandals
The brochure, available on the Senate website, is called The Wise Owls. And – spoiler alert – the story tells how important those Wise Owls are to maintaining order.
The story describes how in the “Forest of Canada” all the animals decided to create a council to make important decisions. But, the animals “picked the most popular among them to sit on the Council” – like the slyest fox and the moose with the most impressive antlers.
As you might expect, the animals started bickering. “Beavers knew about building dams but not about leading a Wolf pack,” the story notes. “Animals sometimes thought only about what was good for their own kind.”
Things come to a head when a beaver chops down trees for a new dam – with the council’s permission – and destroys a squirrel’s nest and badger’s door in the process.
Enter the Wise Owl.
While silhouetted against the glowing moon, the Owl notes that the Owls have been watching the forest for years. A shaggy bear proposes forming a second council – the Senate of Owls – to make sure that all decisions benefit every animal.
As animals come and go from the council, the Senate of Owls remains to give the animals the benefit of their wisdom.
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