What Changed My Life

     My story starts at near the beginning of my consciousness in this world, otherwise known as my first birthday. I had just woken up from my nap to have found myself surrounded by my family yelling at me. Of course, at the time, I had no idea what they were saying, or why they were there. At the time, being yelled at was the worst way to wake up... now it's having the covers pulled off at 6 a.m. by my brother, but back to my story... I must have thought this was a terrible start to the day, given I had no idea what was happening... but I had no idea that the first gift I would receive would change my life forever.
   If you clicked on that link, I know exactly what you are thinking... "how in the h*** could a bear possibly change someone's life!?" Well, I'll tell you...
   At a young age I always played with this bear... every second of every day I either had it in my hand, or it was within a single foot of me. I would not stand for anything else. This behavior is normal at that age. But as I got older and older... I realized that I still had a connection with the bear. 
   I was bullied in the fourth and fifth grade. Both by teachers and students alike. It's hard to report bullying when the person you report it to is either the bully, or on the bully's side. This was part of the reason I am talking about this bear. The remarkable connection between a young child and an object is an incredible strong bond... sometimes children need toys to vent their emotions, and to help them through tough times. Adults do the same thing with religion. They take solace in the fact that their god will hear them and make things better, or will explain why the universe was made to keep them from fearing the unknown. But in reality, some of the time, they are using this idealism as a soundboard to bounce their ideas off of and make them feel better.
   I used my bear for this exact reason. This bear, without responding, could make me feel better instantly. This emotional connection is why people got through the hard times, and why the human race hasn't gone extinct. As Sophocles once said, "One word frees us of all the weight and pain of life -  that word is love."
 

   This bear has stayed with me for 13 years. He has been worn down past his white fur and bright scarf and is now completely gray with a dull red scarf. This wear and tear is because of how much emotion he got from me as a child. My childhood bear represents every tear, every drop of sweat, and every little bit of pain. But I don't want to get rid of this bear. This is a reminder of how I persevered through the bullying, the challenges, and still stand before you today to tell you the story of my bear. 
   Society has rejected that we need physical objects to comfort us, and anyone who does is weak of the mind or soul... but to anyone who is reading who thinks that way, I will pose one question to you: How do you feel when you look at a picture of your significant other? Even though it's just an object, it represents something to you. It represents what you love, and is that physical feeling of warmth and happiness really something that you want to be taken away from those who you call "weak?" I didn't think so.