Bear Friends

I have always loved Teddy Bears. They are so comforting, so cuddly. Maybe it's the kid in me who refuses to grow up. But Teddy Bears have always held a special place in my life. When we were growing up, one of our neighbor's made Teddy Bears. Her husband was the Baptist minister. Their sons were adults, and Elaine was one of the most fun people you would ever meet. I was amazed when I found out she made teddy bears. Her bears were beautiful, yet simple. I bought one at a craft fair, it had blond fur and jointed arms, legs, and head. He wore a lace collar with a blue bow.

For my sixteenth birthday, my parents bought me another bear. She was a sweet bear wearing a teal dress. She had a bow on her ear and pearl earrings. She looked very grown up; appealing to the fearless 16 year old on the verge of adulthood, and the child my parents wished to hold onto a little longer.

In high school, one of my friends, Mandi; also liked Teddy Bears. One day in the summer we went up to the Teddy Bear Factory in Vermont. It was, at the time, the biggest place I had ever seen that was devoted to Teddy Bears. It was a lot of fun, and I had to restrain myself from buying all the bears!

In 1998, my sister was visiting me in Madison, IN. We went into a store that sold Boyds Bears. I had heard people talking about them, and knew people who collected them. She bought me two little bears that day; but she started my collection. Soon the bears became a big part of my life. One of the couches in my apartment was devoted to my growing bear collection. My parents started buying them for me. Everyone knew they could get me a bear. When I moved to this house, Erich let me have the master bedroom, and the smallest of the remaining three bedrooms. He took the two bedrooms that were mid-sized. I turned the small room into the Bear Room. My collection continued to grow; filling the room. I have the angel bears flying from fishing wire on the ceiling. I've run out of wall space; and even the floor is full. I have over 400 bears; but I don't know the exact amount. I should post pictures of my bear room; but it is in a state of disarray right now. For a couple of years, I have been planning to get some order in the room. I stopped collecting the bears a few years ago. I realized that having to tiptoe through the room meant I had too many. The bears also started to look alike to me, and the quality had changed. And I may have been influenced by the realization of how much money had been spent in bears over the years! My goal is to rotate the bears seasonally. Put out the Christmas bears at Christmas, then the Winter ones, etc. Doing this would hopefully make the bedroom usable as, oh, say a bedroom? When my parents come to visit, I let them sleep in my room and I sleep in the living room. Sydney wants to come visit, and right now I don't have a place for her. I would like to get at least a twin bed in the bear room, and then I would have some place for guests to stay. But going through the bears, and packing them up, is a huge task. So I have closed the door and keep thinking to myself 'I will get to it'.

Several years ago, maybe 6 or 7, maybe even more, Erich found this site on the Web for me. It was a "Boyd's Bears Bulletin Board". He thought I would enjoy talking to other collectors. What I found is a diverse group of people, mostly women, who have become very dear friends. We share the love of the bears, (and my collection is NOT the largest!) but we also have other things in common. Some of us are history buffs. Many of us enjoy reading. Others enjoy knitting. A couple were even NASCAR fans. We are sports enthusiasts, crafters, cooks, and travellers. We share so many interests, not just the bears.

Most of us have stopped, or at least seriously cut back, on our collecting. But the friendships we have formed go beyond the bears. I consider many of these women my closest friends, and yet, some of them I have not had the pleasure of meeting in person. I feel like I've known them forever though. We exchange cards for birthdays and Christmas; we reach out across the wires when another needs a friend. We have grieved together over the loss of loved ones, rejoiced when new babies are born into our various families. We are the BnB Buddies. And my Buddies are a big part of my life.

I've had the chance to meet several of my friends. And there are so many more that I want to meet. Most of these women are older than I am, but I have always made friends with women who are more mom's age. Age never seems to matter. Some of my bear friends are grandmothers of college aged grandchildren, and some are my age. The bears brought us together, and then we found the other things we share which strengthened our bond. Facebook has helped us get closer. My Facebook friends are broken into groups, so I can remember which part of my life a particular person is from. I have several 'Amandas' on my list, and several Patricias. Some days my mind wanders, so I like being able to remember who I'm speaking with. It is no surprise that the largest group is 'Bear Buddies'. They are the people I seem to have the most interaction with. They have become very dear friends, and I love each of them. My life is so much better for knowing each and every Bear Buddy.