I smoothed the quilt,
propped up the pillows,
placed Molly in her place on top
where she perches for the day.
Molly is a soft body doll
made by a friend of mine
from my Texas days.
Machine embroidered sleepy sad eyes
light brown yarn hair grown tousled
and messy over the years
blue dress with lacy frills at collar, sleeves and hem
and is actually a reminder of a doll I had in childhood.
Why does a career woman of 65 years have such a doll?
Aren’t we to ‘put away childish things’?
Molly is a doll that cuddles when you want a cuddle
sits quietly when quiet is what is needed
and is a familiar face of greeting at the end of the day.
Many such dolls and stuffed animals have adorned
beds of aging and aged patients cared for over the last many years,
tucked in the crook of an arm,
propped on pillows.
In most of my career, I thought it was
just a part of being old
‘cute’ but really didn’t get it
Now I do.
“Age does not make us childish,
as some say; it finds us true children.”
~ James Anthony Froude
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