Back when I was heading to my first overnight field trip, I wasn’t afraid to be away from home, afraid to sleep in the dark, or afraid of the monsters in the closet — the thing I was most afraid of was bringing my teddy bear with me. My biggest fear was getting made fun of and judged but, I knew if I left him at home, I wouldn’t be able to sleep. So, I prayed and prayed and prayed, and packed him with the rest of my things. Thankfully, no one said a word about it. In fact, they each brought their teddy bears, too.
In high school when I was going away on vacation for the first time with one of my friends, I once again pondered if I should bring my stuffed animal or not… I didn’t want her to think I was weird. But, once again I went against my nerves and doubts, and brought him along with me on the trip. As it turns out, my friend had a stuffed animal too and we ended up spending the entire trip erupting into giggles making up silly stories about our plush friends.
Finally, there I was, packing up everything of my life thus far, getting ready for the move into my freshman year of college. I was packing the movie stubs I saved from my first dates, packing stacks of photos of my friends to hang up in my dorm room, and packing up all the memories I could bring to school with me from home. And, though I questioned it a few times before in my life, I knew that there was no question about this — my stuffed animal, my bedtime and every time pal, and my best friend had to come with me. And, no…for once, I was not even the slightest bit embarrassed to do so.
My teddy bear was there for me when I was scared, there for me when I couldn’t sleep, and there for me when I was sad. He was a toy when I was bored, a confidant when I needed talk, and a friend when I was lonely. He has worn down fur from my hugs, and a crooked nose from my kisses.
The greatest thing about all of this, about growing up, is that we all hit some point where none of us actually want to grow up anymore. In fact, if anything we start to grow down. We start to take naps, want nothing but chocolate milk and apple juice, and embrace our simplicity.
In college when I brought my teddy bear, no one ever questioned why I still cuddle with him at night. Actually, they do quite the opposite of that, and actually play with him as I have done many times before. The only reason I can think of why they do this, is because everyone will always have a little bit of innocence left in them.
So, if you still sleep with a teddy bear, my advice is to never let it go. Don’t let it sit in the attic or in storage gathering dust. Don’t even think about throwing it out, either. Keep it forever and ever.
That’s what I’m going to do at least… so let’s hope my future hubby out there completely accepts it, and won’t mind sharing the bed with a panda bear stuffed animal named Bamboo.
Stay youthful, collegeittes!
HCXO