Dolls for girls and boys

Let me introduce you to Benjie.

 Benjie, believe it or not, is over thirty years old. He's a much travelled doll, having been born in South Africa, lived in England, explored the Continent (of Europe) and now North America. Recently he's taken on a new lease of life, having had face and body lifts, thanks to my nimble-fingered younger daughter. 

Once, while travelling in Scotland, he created a crisis because he lingered in bed rather than jumping into our family's red Peugeot station wagon. We left him behind. Alerted by wails and after fruitless searches, we phoned the dear old lady who owned the bed and breakfast where we'd stayed and she, kind soul, posted him back to us.

Since he was resuscitated, Benjie has been playing outdoors, as you can tell from the photo. Nana tried to wipe his face and wash his hands, but she wasn't too successful.*

And yes, Benjie = Benjie as in Magical Motherhood anecdotes, because I made him for his dad. I doubt anyone who sees him with his two small sons today would argue with me when I state 'He's an incredibly awesome father'. This applies also to his older brother, who is a wonderful dad to his two step-daughters. I'm always so touched when I experience the way he is with them. He also had a doll that I made for him although I can't remember what the doll's name was. His habit was to grip him (the doll) around the neck, i.e. just below the head, which was firmer than the soft, wool-stuffed body. So the neck grew longer and longer over time!

I believe playing with dolls helped both our sons to become such amazing dads.

Now then, my perception is that there's prejudice and sexism around the idea of giving boys dolls to play with. Soft animals and teddy bears? Quite okay. But not dolls.

Dear readers, I think this is crazy. Yes, you can probably love and nurture an animal as much as a doll, and yet… don't we strive to become truly human? I hope so.

*A side note here. It's good to wipe small children's faces in the morning because this helps them to wake up. Waking up properly can help the evening going-to-sleep process.