In September 2009 I returned to Spokane (leaving you with your mom and dad in the DC area, ninos,) with a lot of work to do. My house had sold while I was gone. The things collected over a lifetime were waiting for me in storage. It was time for me to find a new home, one near your GG. Moving is difficult and expensive. It is a good time to get rid of things one no longer needs or uses. I managed to give away or toss many things. When I had trouble deciding about an item, I asked myself "Do I need it or use it? Can I live without it?" Whatever passed the test made it into the moving van. A few things were painful. They couldn't pass the test, but still they tugged at me.One of these was a little wicker doll carriage, a beloved remnant of my childhood. I had happy memories of trundling this carriage up and down the gravel road beside the house where Uncle Judd and I grew up. On a good day, I managed to put doll clothes on Henry (the cat) and lay him in the carriage bed where he patiently rode for long stretches. When he tired of the game, he would jump out and dash away, with me in rapid pursuit to retrieve the precious doll bonnet and gown. I have kept this toy for almost sixty years, thinking that someday I might have a little granddaughter who would enjoy using it. I had located a fellow in Spokane who specialized in wicker restoration. The carriage could be repaired. I could take it to Weezie in DC. She and LC could take turns wheeling it around the apartment. So ran my idle day dream. Then I realized that the carriage would never have the same meaning for Weezie and LC as it did for me. I loved the carriage because it was a pleasant part of my childhood, one of very few toys I had. Weezie and LC have toys of their own for which they are developing special attachments. The carriage might go to them with an unreasonable expectation ("Love this toy because Nonna does and because she gave it to you"). Not much of a gift, ninos. More of a burden, really. ("You kids be careful with Nonna's doll carriage. Careful, I said!") And with that realization, I felt free to let my little wicker baby buggy go.
2 comments:
Don't forget I used to play with that doll carriage, too, and a lot of your other old toys when I would visit Grandma at her house during the summer. Kitty wouldn't lay down in it for me, but then again Kitty wouldn't let me anywhere near him. I hauled dolls around in it, including your old doll, and I treasured it, although I didn't understand it was yours until I grew too old to play with it. That thing saw a lot of love, as is evident in the picture.
I had forgotten that, but of course you would have played with it. And actually it was still in remarkable shape, for the rough treatment it was given. Kitty was a crab, no doubt about that. Can't picture him in a bonnet. Thanks for reminding me of this.
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