Photo A Day, Day 5: I Collect...

A lot of people I know have collections of things. Some friends of mine collect unusual and funny salt and pepper shakers. Several have collections of antique teacups. Another collects Bakelite jewelry. My aunt has a gorgeous collection of carnival glass. Others have collections of shoes, or purses, or wine glasses, or theater programs. Somehow, I’ve never managed to develop a love for one single thing that was deep enough to want a whole bunch of them. I have a few coffee mugs, but not really a collection. I have several blown glass vases, but not enough to consider them a collection. As a child, though, I did have one beloved – and extensive – collection: My stuffed animals. My collection was so extensive, in fact, that my dad built a circus wagon toy box to keep them in. (Which my sister occasionally used to keep ME in.)

My own collection is long gone, sold in yard sales, donated to the Salvation Army, or given to friends, with one single remaining prized member still residing in my bedroom (Lady from “Lady in the Tramp,” in case you’re wondering). But there is a new collection of stuffed animals in my home, belonging to my daughter. My son passed on a few of his old “stuffies,” my grown stepdaughter even handed down her much-loved “Chow-Chow the Cow,” and the collection continued to grow with every gift-giving occasion (and many non-gift-giving occasions), until her bed is so full of stuffies that there’s hardly room for her.

This photo shows literally only about a third of her collection. The pink sock monkey has a brown twin and a big brother; the giraffe has a big-eyed baby and a larger mother; the bears have a family the size of the Duggar clan (including in-laws) in every color of the rainbow; the elephant is joined in the jungle by tigers and hippos; and although the cheery pink monster dubbed “Goo” is unique, she has many friends of similarly unidentifiable or questionable species. This collection is a menagerie of epic proportion.

As is the case with many collectors and their collections, my daughter has a few special favorites among the bunch. As I’ve mentioned in the past, Pink and her sock monkey brother, E.E., are her constant companions. Goo is a favorite naptime cuddler, as are the various assorted giraffes. But there are no beasties in her collection whom she doesn’t love dearly, none who are never bestowed with great affection, not one who is not missed should he/she/it fall under the bed or behind the couch.

And, as is also the case with many collectors and their collections, my daughter is not in the slightest bit averse to constantly adding to her collection. She has more than enough love to go around. Just maybe not quite enough bed.