Days of Dolls and Toys

When you grow up you not only gain but leave behind a lot of things. As a kid I used to love playing with my dolls - local plastic dolls with golden hair or foreign ones like Barbie, Ken, their house, makeup and kitchen sets.

My mom made sure that I understood the significance of money- so I was supposed to save if I wanted to buy a new one. Over years from my First Barbie I collected Birthday Barbie,  Sparkle Barbie,  Pretty Hair Barbie,  Ken and Wendie. Dressing up with spare old rags cut and saved by Ma or stitching with running thread a haphazard top and skirt. Sometimes Ma or Badi Mummy used to stitch a dress for my dolls. For jewellery I had cheap trinkets bought outside shops on our visits to a religious deity on the hills.

But suddenly as a teenager I was too old to play. I secretly played with my dolls till I was 15. On the day I finished my board exams I played with them last and then packed them forever in my Mom's store room.

There were times I felt like checking on them like you pay a visit to old friends. But either there was no time or out of the fact that I will be laughed at. They stayed there only to be shifted from one storage place to another or one house to another.

I also got busy with real life love, wedding, dresses, jewellery and jobs. A lot of times  Mom told me to get rid of them or give to younger kids.  But I found the younger generation too callous to treasure my toys. My first Barbie is almost 25 years old and it still is in a perfect shape. Nowadays kids just play and throw buying one after another. I can not give these heirlooms to them to destroy.

Now in 30s I can't play or make up stories with them. Playing real HOUSE in life - I have bigger things to save for to buy. But I can say I proudly own them. My love for toys is ever abound and am still buying me some toys.

But they are not to play - they are for decor and collection along with other worldly possessions. Its not that one can't play with them or I have no creativity. But when you grow up you lose the wonderful art of being surprised and amazed at the same old silly fantasy house stories. That's what you need to play with toys. That's what you lose when you grow up.

The image below is from the Toy Museum at the Castle in Prague, Czech.