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3:23:00 PM EDT
Feeling Quiet
Toy Soldiers
I have written a lot about my daughter, mainly because she was
the only child for almost ten years before her brother came along.
She already had a room in the new house we had built, decorated
as girly as we could possibly make it. She had the white French
provincial furniture trimmed with gold, and a canopy bed. The
coverings were filmy nylon organza with pink and yellow butter-
flies floating delicately on it. Lots of pink decor and her favorite
Ballerina doll, which danced and twirled when you held her hand.
Darling Son reached the age where he had outgrown a
crib and toddler bed and needed a room of his own. However, the
transition to his own room proved to be a little stressful for him,
and his parents, too. He had a small room, with a twin bed, that
I outfitted with his favorite Scooby-Doo bedspread and all his
toys. But he was not happy with the change. He would go to bed
just fine, go through all the rituals of having a book read to him and
then getting tucked in with a good night kiss.
Everything would seem fine, but just as we settled down with
a sigh, some little guy would appear in the doorway and say, "Mom,
I want you." Or "Dad, I need you." And no amount of coaxing would
get him back to his room for long. When asked why, he stuck his little
lip out and whispered, "I scared." He was never able to tell us what
he was scared of and we tried a variety of night lights and music but it
just did not work.
I know we probably should have been more determined but the
sight of that pajama-clad toddler standing sobbing in the doorway was
too much for us. Besides, DD had to go to school, and if she awoke,
she took him into her bed and then she didn't rest well. So it was a
no-win situation. I decided to find another way.
One of the books that DS loved best was about little toy soldiers.
While leafing through a catalog, I found a spread and navy blue
curtains, with small toy soldiers all over it. We ordered them and
he really liked them. I told him that the toy soldiers would protect
him. "But they're too little, Mom", he said. But I could tell he
liked the idea. So I said, "What if I could put big, big soldiers
beside your bed to guard you. Would that help." His eyes lit up
and he seemed so excited .
I drew with pencil three, ( 3' tall) toy soldiers on the wall
beside his bed. They matched the smaller ones in his spread and
curtains. I must say that I did a good job painting them later in
their red, and gold uniforms with guns held at their side. The tall
helmets with the gold plumes looked rather realistic. My little boy
with dark touseled hair damp from his shower was thrilled with
them. They stood stalwart and brave beside his bed.
He couldn't wait to be tucked into his bed with his favorite
teddy bear to hear the beloved story once again. When I left the
room he said, "Soldiers take care of me, Mommy?" and I said,
"Yes, we will all take care of you, honey. Just go to sleep now."
And he did. He slept all that night in his own little bed and after
that, he felt safe and secure there with his guardians by his side.
We built another home and moved into it when he was going
into third grade. By that time, he did not feel he needed the toy
soldiers but he loved them anyway. We all agreed, sister included,
that we hated to leave our faithful friends behind. We had grown,
and it was time to enter a new chapter of our lives. However,
we all still remember fondly our brilliant, wonderful heroes.
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What a clever Mom thing to do. This was a very nice memory.
Smiles, Leigh -
That was a very clever idea. Soldiers guarding the bed ! Thanks for sharing the story...some day it may come in handy for my one of my grandbabes - you never know. 'On Ya' - ma
4/15/08 10:59 PM
betty