04 Jan Toy Town
The winter school break has given the girls time to take careful inventory of all of the stuffed animals and dolls they have accumulated over the years. After a thorough count, they proudly announced that they had a total of 128 stuffed toys, many with a memorable background story. There was a llama that was rescued Corduroy-bear-style from a local market, a black puppet dog that helped Ella fall asleep during naptime in her Montessori toddler class years ago, and a blue elephant Emma adopted from a friend who was moving across the country and had run out of space in the box designated for stuffed animals.
One way or another, all of these stuffed animals and dolls had found their way into our home. In an effort to instill some order and structure into their plush companions, the girls decided to create a society.
Over the next several days, in a systematic way, the girls recorded information about each of the stuffed animals and dolls, compiling a comprehensive census that included names, physical descriptions, dates of birth, and occupations. The occupation question required the girls to assign each of the responsible and industrious citizens different jobs in their community. From the next room, I could overhear a lively debate as the girls grappled with the challenge of assigning jobs to their limited population.
Later that day, the girls introduced me to each of the members of their stuffed community, complete with detailed census data. As they went through the list of occupations, I marveled at the thoughtful and comprehensive array of roles they had assigned. Teachers, nurses, doctors, paramedics, construction workers, veterinarians, police officers, mental health workers, engineers, biologists, firefighters, pastors, grocery store clerks, lawyers, bakers, farmers and librarians—all found a place in their miniature society.
I marveled at the diverse roles they had envisioned. And my heart swelled with gratitude when they revealed the creative roles:
- Phoebe, a plush Disney Sleeping Beauty doll, is a photographer responsible for taking portraits of families and capturing memorable moments.
- Gabby, a pink Care Bear, is an artist who creates paintings and works of art for people’s homes and teaches classes to allow community members to express their creativity.
- Ocean, a turtle, is a writer who authors books for children and adults.
In this make-believe society, the girls unwittingly highlighted a critical truth—that creative pursuits are just as vital to a community as conventional jobs.
It’s a simple yet profound lesson from child’s play: a reminder that a society thrives not just on the practical, but the creative forces of story, art and beauty that heal, inspire and sustain us.