I think pretty much everyone had some sort of inanimate friend in their formative years. Mine was a blanket called Colt. I was an imaginative child, but not one blessed with a surfeit of sense; somehow, this plain white receiving blanket with sateen edging resembled nothing to me so much as a frolicsome young equine.
The 5-year-old, however, has taken this to a level heretofore unheard of. Her constant companion is a small grey rabbit called Dozy. He is a character from one of her favorite picture books, Mama Says Goodnight, which is about three young bunnies going through their evening routine under the watchful eye of their caring yet punctual mother. Dozy has two sisters, called Rosie and Posy, and together they are the subject of several books. Dozy is portrayed as being a bit on the simple side, as evidenced by his utterances related to mealtime ("Dinner, dinner! What's for dinner?"), a shooting star ("Wish, wish! Make a wish!"), and bath time ("Bubbles, bubbles! I want bubbles!"). Presumably, this vernacular continues into the other volumes, which include Bunny's Noisy Book ("Noises, noises! Loud, loud noises!") and Goodnight and God Bless ("Jesus, Jesus! I love Jesus!"). His is a carefree and happy existence.
When purchased, it was not intended that Dozy would happen into the clutches of a young blue-eyed girl. He was a gift with the purchase of the aforementioned book, which at the time was slated for a boy we would be adopting from some far away and exotic land. Life, though, rarely follows the script, and the Eldest was born within a year or so afterward. Dozy quickly became her favorite. He was the first animal into the crib at night, and the one constantly being dragged along by one ear or shoved along the floor in the manner of a small fuzzy snowplow. As her imagination and vocabulary expanded, he became less of a stuffed animal and more of a adventuring partner. He accompanied us to Rocky Mountain National Park and served as a lookout for bears and wolves. As time has gone by, he has been subject to more frequent and harrowing episodes, which has contributed greatly to a rather haggard appearance. His once-pristine blue footie jammies became threadbare, his fur bedraggled, his stuffing compressed to the point where his limbs are nothing more than air beneath an unraveling layer of polyester. Finally, a new outfit was deemed necessary. Wife fashioned a new pair of pajamas for him out of a scrap of leftover fabric. It's forest green and has moose on it. Thus far, it has been rated a successful replacement.
With age, Dozy has been imbued with more and greater powers. He can now drive a car and fly a plane. He has numerous 'kids' who are forever causing mischief around our house; mischief that might otherwise be placed at the feet of a certain child. He celebrates birthdays approximately fortnightly. He has traveled to many out-of-the-way locales and seen many interesting things. He has swum with dolphins. He has climbed mountains and piloted helicopters. He has a freaking dragon, for chrissakes.
This is one seriously awesome bunny.
And yet, his exploits pale in comparison to those of his grandma and grandpa. Theirs is an epic tale truly worthy of being celebrated. And a tale for another post.
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