Do you remember when you were a kid and it seemed that you could amuse yourself with just about anything? Sure you may have begged your parents for the new, bright and flashy, all-my-friends-have-it toy. You probably still remember that one thing you had to have the most. At the time you were certain you might die without having one of your own... or at least nobody would want to play with you anymore. Without it, you might have end up wandering the outskirts of the playground alone and friendless, forever.
Cue the violin.
For me, one item stands out the most. I must have been five when all of my friends had a
Cabbage Patch Kid. I pleaded with my parents for at least one. It's not that I was greedy, it's just that my best friend already owned four. Therefore my parents were surely slacking. In December I put "Cabbage Patch" on the top of my Christmas list. When the 25th came around my Mom handed me a special box from under the tree. I could tell by her smile that it must be my very own Cabbage Patch doll. With glee I ripped off the paper and opened the lid. There laying in the box was indeed a doll but,
not a Cabbage Patch doll. Something must have gone terribly wrong in the gift giving department. I looked up at my mother and in a confused voice said, "This isn't a Cabbage Patch doll." She assured me that it was and that this doll was an even better, more expensive version, since it was handmade. I doubt I new the word "swindled" at the time but, I sure thought my mom had been. (It's hard to rationalize the value of handmade to a five year old.)
Granted this doll had the correct number of appendages and facial features. It was about the same size and had yarn hair similar to a Cabbage Patch. However, this doll's skin was made from pasty white flour sack cloth and had embroidered eyes which made it look like voodoo doll. Not to offend my mother for her naivety as to what a Cabbage Patch Kid was I tried my best to explain...
"Real Cabbage Patch Kids are born in a cabbage patch, hence the name. You know they are authentic since they come with a birth certificate and Xavier Roberts signature is on their bum. Oh, and they have a nice smell too."
Needless to say I never got a real Cabbage Patch Kid and now I am so glad I didn't. I learned many lessons from that gift... I soon realized that I will not parish if I don't get exactly what I want. Another lesson learned is that children really don't need special toys to be happy. Since I hid that creepy voodoo doll at first chance, I had hours of fun finding other ways to entertain myself. Making shadow puppets on the wall, building forts in the living room and building my own car out of a skateboard and a cardboard box. Did you know a cardboard box can be anything you want to make it?! *
*Except a real Cabbage Patch Kid. Registered trademark, look for the name Xavier Roberts on the bum.
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