Toy box brings back memories

I cleaned out my daughter’s toy box yesterday in preparation for turning it over to her. It brought back so many memories.
I remember when we bought the plastic polka-dotted elephant. We saw it on the top shelf in the toy store. We had gone in with the intention of buying a container to corral her possessions. I asked her which one she wanted and she pointed to the elephant. We carted it home and filled it up.
Little did I know that the elephant itself would be as much of a plaything as any of her other toys. She would empty out the box and climb in. The top would be worn like a hat before it was put back into place. The two big holes in the top ensured she would have enough air as she giggled inside. It was the perfect size for a toddler.
I found the tiny dishes and cups she had as a child. I remembered all the tea parties she and a neighbor girl had with those dishes. Many an afternoon was spent eating cut up hot dogs, carrots, celery and green peppers off those plates. The tiny cups were filled with Kool-Aid from an equally tiny pitcher. The pitcher seems to have been lost over the years.
There was a Ferris wheel that my brothers had donated to her. I wound it up and the tinkly music filled my ears. The play camera also worked as it used to but the pictures were an odd shade of red.
I found teething rings that she never used. I unearthed cars, trucks and a little backhoe that had belonged to my brothers. There was a Frisbee I had gotten from one of the local health fairs. There was a stuffed counting sheep obtained as part of a promotion when we bought our television.
I found the canister of dominoes that had sat on the top of the secretary when I was a kid. I found more dominoes in the bottom of the toy box. But when I tried to add them to the canister, I couldn’t get the top off as it had rusted shut.
I found dolls and coloring books I had bought for granddaughter Emma the last time she and her mother visited here. I found a plastic bag full of crayons. There were necklaces and a green lei. There were bath toys, balls and a plastic bat.
I even found Grandpa’s baby. My husband’s dad had found a doll at the dump. He brought it home and cleaned it up. My mom made it a new dress. My daughter and her half- and step-sisters all referred to it as Grandpa’s baby. They cherished that floppy doll and played with it for many years. All the other dolls have been misplaced, but Grandpa’s baby is still around. It is blind now, as its eyes have turned a milky blue.
There is a brand new Raggedy Ann that has barely been played with. When my daughter was small, before Grandpa’s baby came along, she played with Raggedy Ann more than any of her other dolls. Raggedy Ann made regular appearances at show and tell in her preschool. The original is in my cedar chest. The new one is still waiting to be loved.
In the very bottom of the toy box there is an irregular hole. One year my brother, David, asked for a hamster for his birthday. I put the creature in the empty toy box overnight. Little did I know it would try to chew its way to freedom by making a hole in the bottom.
The following day, I thought I had it secured in the car. It escaped and we had to practically tear the car apart to find it. Mom was mad that I bought it for him. I told her that was what he asked for. I don’t know whatever became of it. But the proof that it had once been inside the toy box remains.
There are so many memories connected with that polka-dotted elephant. Memories of my own childhood, my brothers, my daughter, her grandparents, her friends and now her children are all contained within it. Now it is time to turn over the care of the box to her; time for her children to add to the memories; to add to the love contained in that simple plastic elephant.[[In-content Ad]]