Everyone can remember a time when innocence dominated, and having fun was the only thing that mattered. Nowadays, grades and academics occupy the space in our minds. When the feeling of stress gets the best of us, it is often found helpful to squeeze the life out of an unfortunate nearby plushie or scream into a giant pillow until your throat becomes raw. Additionally, these comfort-giving items aren’t always something that you would physically use to release your emotions. They can be something simple, such as an origami flower you made in middle school or a figurine that was handed down to you from your grandfather. Sentimental items like these hold a place in your heart and in your memories.
“When I was little, my oldest cousin gave me a stuffed panda before he went to college,” said freshman Amanda Hang. “It reminded me a lot of him while he was gone, so that I didn’t miss him as much. I still have it in my room.”
Inanimate companions like Hang’s plushie have the ability to make us feel loved and cared for. The soothing familiarity of these items can give us a sense of security and help us cope in difficult times. Events in our lives can influence how we feel towards certain people, places, and, in this case, objects. For example, the stickers on your water bottle can give you a blissful feeling while reminding you of your previous ski trip or beach vacation. In other cases, maybe you made a small craft as a kid that reminds you of your childhood. For instance, during the quarantine period of the COVID-19 pandemic, I picked up a new hobby of making keychains out of plastic lanyard strings. The hundreds of keychains that I made are still sitting in a drawer in my room, a memory of one of my favorite hobbies. Sometimes, our beloved plushies aren’t only a reminder of someone or something, but also serve as a connection between two individuals.
“I have a stuffed dinosaur, and when my little sister was born, she got one that was identical to it. It was so sentimental that I carried it around all of the time,” freshman Ava Arzate reminisced. She said that now, “It’s sitting on a shelf, dusty and old, but [she] would hate for it to be thrown away.”
This shows that we can form attachments to items that are dear to us, even if we don’t directly interact with them day to day. Sophomore AvaMarie Cha, however, still wears her special charm bracelet to this day.
“My parents got it for me as a gift when I was a toddler,” she said, “All the charms represent a different milestone in my life, so it means a lot to me. If I ever lost that bracelet, I would feel like I lost a part of myself.”
Every person has that special possession tucked away somewhere in their bedroom. Whether it’s an old article of clothing you’ve chosen to keep or a broken necklace that you couldn’t bring yourself to part with, the sentimental value of certain items offers joy and serenity to your life, all while bringing you back to a place of tranquility.
Photo Courtesy of UNSPLASH.COM
