Monday, July 25, 2011

Our newest family member

For a couple of months, Amelia has been talking about 'Bably'. As my husband travels a bit, I had thought that Bably was an affectionate name for 'dad', that is, until this weekend.

On Saturday, we went to a picnic at my daughter's daycare. While changing her diaper in a small bathroom, we had a very interesting conversation that goes something like this:

Amelia: "Mammy, Bably is here."

Me: "And what is Bably saying."

Amelia: "Grrrrr (while making monster face)."

Me: "Is Bably a tiger?"

Amelia: "Yes."

Me: "Is Bably a friendly tiger?"

Amelia: "Bably is a doggie."

Me: "Was Bably pretending to be a tiger?"

Amelia: "Yes (with accompanying giggles)."

Very quickly, Bably has become an active participant in the Kearney family. Yesterday afternoon, Bably pushed Amelia down, and she was sad. We had a talk, the three of us, about not hurting people, after which, we had a group hug. Last night, Bably was in the kitchen (of the restaurant where we were eating). He was helping the cooks get Amelia's dinner ready as quickly as possible (she was hungry). This morning Amelia told me that Bably had an ouchy and he needed ice. I asked if it was OK to give Bably imaginary ice, and she said yes, as she held out her hand. I put the 'ice' into it, and she responded - it's cold.

Padhraic asked me if it was normal for kids to have imaginary friends, or if it was a sign of something wrong. I assured him it was a wonderful thing - that her imagination could be so alive, as to create a creature who can interact with us on a daily basis and help us work out what is going on in the world. And I can't help but feel that little bit of pride well up inside me, as I see a side of self that I have always embraced, the ability to imagine the world as she wants to see it, rather than feeling weighed down by a perceived reality.

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