Day 3 - My Teddy Bear

As a child, something that I couldn’t live without was my teddy bear. I slept with him, nestled between my arms, for most of my childhood. Along with most other children, a stuffed animal is very important. And in my case, “very important” is an understatement. Nights without my teddy bear were long and sleepless, usually resulting in a very crabby girl the next morning. There have been many incidents where I’ve temporarily lost my teddy bear, or forgotten him at my lake house for a long period of time (yes, three weeks felt like an eternity to me as a child). But there was one mistake that left me crying for hours and hours on end…

Other than a beautiful, nighttime boat ride on the Seine and a stunning view of the twinkling Eiffel Tower lights from my hotel room, I don’t remember much from my trip to Paris. I was only in third grade, and I wasn’t interested in the Louvre or the fancy restaurants. At that age, I still slept with my teddy bear every night, and I even brought him on our trip. One morning, after I woke up from a nap, I forgot to untangle my teddy bear from the sheets. We went outside for a walk through the garden that was across the street from our hotel, and by the time we got back, the housekeeper had already come, and she had taken the sheets away in a bundle without checking if anything was inside of them. I searched the entire room, and once I realized he was gone, I was sobbing. I didn’t know what to think. Could it be that this morning was the last time I would see him? Would be ever come back? It sounds like I’m talking about a person, I know, but I took my teddy bear very seriously!

After multiple phone calls to the front desk, he returned the next morning in even better conditions than when I last saw him! He was washed and smelled like lavender. Today, my teddy bear sits on my nightstand, untouched. As a child, I couldn’t imagine life without him, but now, at 14 years old, I’m more independent, and thankfully, I don’t need to rely on a teddy bear to have a restful night.