Wanted

Recently I was "called" into Sabrina's room by her grunts and groans at about 1 a.m. She was standing up in her crib and calling to me. Normally when she wakes in the night she wants milk, so I refilled her sippy cup and handed it to her. She threw it back at me and said "No."

She was pointing into the corner of the room at the toy box, still grunting. (I can't wait until she can vocalize actual words). I assumed that she wanted a toy.

So, I brought her the electronic tracing game to her, which she has been playing with for awhile. She cried and said no, still pointing at the toy room.

So I brought her one of the books out of the toy box. That solicited the same reaction, crying, screaming and throwing the book onto the floor. So I tried another toy. Then another.

After awhile, I was starting to become frustrated. Her sister was, fortunately, sleeping through all this. But I had no idea what Sabrina wanted. I had tried every toy in the box she had played with recently. I had tried a sippy cup full of milk. Her pointing and grunting that is so typical of a two year old was not effectively communicating to me what she wanted.

So, I took her out of her crib and told her to go get what she wanted, hoping she knew what she wanted. She walked straight over to the toy box, dug through it, and pulled out the little stuffed Tigger. Once she got it, she hugged it, turned around, and walked back to her crib with it.

I put her back in the crib and laid her down. She was hugging Tigger and, most importantly, quiet and content. She laid her little head on her pillow, with Tigger under her arm, and closed her eyes.

So, I was able to return to bed. But, I was dumbfounded.

She had never played with Tigger before. We don't watch Winnie the Pooh on TV. She already has a Mickey Mouse and a Minnie Mouse in her crib if all she wanted was a stuffed animal to hug? What was wrong with the other toys I gave her? I brought her toys which she has played with many times, toys I knew she liked.

My adult mind believes all the toys are the same and she should have been happy with the first toy I gave her. Think how many two year olds in Africa have no stuffed animals, let alone a choice of them? What is the difference between hugging a stuffed Mickey Mouse or a stuffed Tigger?

What made Tigger different at that moment in time was that Sabrina WANTED Tigger. She had her mind set and offering her substitutions was futile. There really is no substantive difference between the two. Some kids would prefer Mickey. I would.

What made Tigger special is Sabrina's heart. Her longing for it. Tigger by itself can do nothing: can't talk, move, or even breathe. There are no lights or sounds which come from it. Really it is rather a boring toy. Yet Sabrina, on that night, treasured it. She WANTED it.