Why Everyone Should Have a Teddy Bear

1. It's good to have something to hold at night.
2. It reminds you it's still OK to need someone else.
3. You can't hold a teddy bear and be angry.
4. It's comforting to know that someone will always be there.
5. Teddy Bears keep you warm at night.
6. Teddy Bears are good at holding tears.
7. It reminds you of a time when you believed in happily ever afters and helps you to believe again.
8. There's something special about seeing something show physical signs of being loved.
9. Headaches go away when you're squeezing a Teddy Bear tightly.

**Note: Pets make good substitutes for Teddy Bears**

(Real bears do not.)

I presented this Teddy Bear statement to a group of 4th graders in the Spring when they were in the process of writing their "This I hold true.." papers. A lot of the kids smiled and didn't think I was serious. Some of the boys scoffed. So I went on...

"Sometimes I night I think about things. Things that didn't bother me during the day, start to really bother me at night. Sometimes at night I start to realize that I really do feel scared about some things, and that other things really make me sad. When I was in 4th grade a lot of things scared me, a lot of things worried me, a lot of things made me sad. And made me feel lonely. Have you ever felt like that? Sometimes the night just creeps up on you and all of a sudden you feel very small and very alone and very afraid. Sometimes the things you try to ignore at school or around your friends come back to you when you're alone in your bed at night. But when you have a Teddy Bear, it reminds you that you aren't alone. That you aren't stupid. That everything will be alright. A Teddy Bear represents feeling loved. Feeling secure. Feeling hopeful. Can anyone relate?"

The kids hung on my every word, and almost all of them nodded solemnly. (Maybe you are too).

"I told you about how my brother died. He was really sick when I was in 4th grade. I used to worry about him so much and feel so sad about losing him. Because I had a Teddy Bear, I didn't have to fight that feeling alone. Ya know?"

One girl raised her hand and talked about losing her dog. 

One of the tough boys talked about his pet dying, and he started tearing up.

Another boy talked about losing a family member.

A girl mentioned how he dog died too.

Everyone nodded. Everyone listened. Everyone understood.

Our class' star athlete ended up titling his final paper "Nobody ever really dies. This I hold true."

The class clown wrote about how close he feels to his grandfather even though he is dead, and how much he wishes he knew him better.

All of this, because I said I still believed in Teddy Bears.