Knick Knacks from the Past and Growing Up in the Present

 

Beanie Babies, their coats being worn out from so much use sit right next to the Barbie Dolls, some of them missing clothing and others missing body parts. They stand side by side as one. It is a remembrance of the past, as they lay in hiding for someone new to use them instead.

And then there are the old books that line the shelf; the ones where there are only pictures instead of words, and colors instead of fonts. Their pages being torn and folded over, not realizing as a young child the importance of chapters in your life and how each one needs to be treated with delicacy and care.

The petite sized t-shirts and sweaters that would fit better on the Beanie Babies and dolls then they would on you, stay in there as well. The old play make up that would be neon pink or turquoise blue that none of us would think about wearing, now stay stored away underneath the clumps of clothes.

Memories of jump roping contests and tea parties with friends we thought we would never forget get warped in as well, plastering themselves to the walls of the room. But where did the people go and did they bring our innocence with them?

Baby shoes, jewelry, yo-yos, stickers and signed baseballs from our favorite teams. Crayons, markers and a stack of white computer paper. Most of it got lost amongst the room, paper that had an assortment of colors and scribbles all over, symbolizing the highs and lows of life. They are drawings that changed from our moods as a child, some black with X’s and others pink with hearts. It is the blank paper that is left, the blank paper that is found, waiting for more scribbles to be drawn because with growing up, comes our new experiences.

What you put inside comes out differently, or might not come out at all. It might stay in this lost and found forever, collecting dust, waiting for someone to walk in and pause. For even though everyone grows up, you should always pause to relive the experiences that you have stored away and never ever forget them. Memories are sometimes lost, due to aging, a process that we try to stop but never succeed to do. Because just like growing up, aging is a natural process as well. And it’s all about growing up, digging, uncovering, and storing away. It’s about reliving, experiencing the new as well as experiencing the old.