I saw it sitting on the edge of the end table when I came in from my long car ride up north. A familiar book cover with the worn look that grows on a book after years of its pages being turned. It wasn’t until the wee hours of several days later that I opened the cover. Those everlasting hours between the darkest of night and the first hint of a new day that can hold one in suspended motion seemed to spin a spell that compelled me to open the book up.
Like many-a-classic, “The Velveteen Rabbit” resonates differently at varying moments in life, which it proceeded to do as I followed the little stuffed rabbit from Christmas morn to his final destination as a Real Rabbit.
I’d been feeling a bit like the velveteen rabbit when I opened the book; my sheen all faded and my velvet worn, my hair a bit messy and my joints all flappy.
“Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby. But these things don’t matter at all, because once you are Real you can’t be ugly, except to people who don’t understand.” Margery Williams, The Velveteen Rabbit
I don’t mind so much that I’ve become “very shabby”, for you see, dear reader, I also feel very much that I am loved – and that I am Real. I hope you do, too.
You dear angel, you. I just caught myself in the mirror and was feeling awfully shabby. And here you are with the perfect antidote to those feelings. What a wonderful post and the perfect quote to remind me what really matters to those who matter.
It’s good to finally be Real, and your real beauty comes shining through!
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Antidotes are good for us all, aren’t they, Teresa? Such a simple and lovely book to reminds us all to be real! Thank you.
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It is a worthy objective, to be real. I love the picture. 🙂
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Thank you, Andra.
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Aww, bless you both, Penny! 🙂 I love the photo and the book. Must look out my copy when I get home.
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I’m so glad you do, Perpetua, and I hope you locate your copy of The Velveteen Rabbit.
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Penny, Your sweet words brought tears to my eyes. What pure joy in that little blue bundle! I hope your daughter is doing well, and the whole precious family just drinks in every moment of celebrating new life. I am so happy for you, and you look just wonderful to me! Debra
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Aw, how sweet of you to say so, Debra. It is pure joy! I’ll be leaving, soon, but will have such nice memories and feelings of this little guy and his big sister. Life is good.
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So happy that you are Real, like the rest of us of a “certain age”! You look pretty good to me with that handsome bundle of joy in your arms. He’s cuter than a kitten and that’s a high compliment from cat-lover me. These are the most precious of days for you and you wear them well. I am overjoyed for you. Very glad you are back safe and sound on the Cutoff as you were missed. Please show us more pictures!!!
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Certain ages and Real – we all get there, don’t we? Thank you, Marilyn. I love that you find Ezra as cute as a kitten. I’m actually not back yet, but, will be by the end of the weekend and will surely have more to share.
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Dear Penny, you look great and so does that little doll who is with you. I am so glad you are back. Take some time to rest from your long drive and your time away from home. Reflect on the memories that have been made since your momentous journey on Labor Day. I can almost picture you with a nice cup of tea, a smile on your face, and a bit of a sigh on your lips as you think of the joy of being Yia Yia. I am smiling with you.
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Thank you, Janet, it is nice of you to say. I’m not back home yet, but, will be by the end of the weekend. I’m so glad I could spend as much time here and that sigh is coming tonight, for sure. I’m so happy to hear you are smiling with me, my dear friend.
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Thanks for this lovely post and congratulations on the birth of your grandson! What a treat for you to have the new experience of a little boy in the family!
I always cry when I read the Velveteen Rabbit! The first time I ever heard of it was when I heard it read by Meryl Steep on PBS. I went right out and bought the book for Anton when he was little and choked up every time I read it!
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P.S. You look great in that photo, not “shabby” at all!
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Thank you Janet, for all. It is a treat. All of Ezra’s relatives will be taking turns visiting, helping out, playing with Kezzie. It is grand!
I really do need to listen to this being read by Meryl Streep. Though I love to read it myself, I’m sure Meryl Streep’s telling is touching, indeed.
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What a pleasure to see you, and the dear little new one., so tenderly and snugly held. I felt touched by what you said about being ‘real’, having a shabby day myself. I too have read The Velveteen Rabbit at different times. Now I’m reminded of it again, and I have a feeling I’m going to have to find a copy for the little sweetheart in my life.
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Oh, Juliet, I’m sure Mira will love hearing you read “The Velveteen Rabbit” and will treasure this special book. It is a story that always give the reader a gift, doesn’t it? I hope your shabby day turned into something very real and special.
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I often remember Maslow’s Self-actualisation at the top of his human development pyramid, learned long ago at Teacher’s college.. and think… mmm. I know now what he meant.. it is indeed ‘being real’. Lovely precious post Penny. Beautiful pic of you and sweet wee Ezra,. Blessings !
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I know what you mean, Joan, having taken the same college course of study. Of course, children’s literature was my favorite class. Thank you so much and he is a blessing, indeed.
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Nothing makes you feel ‘realer’ (and perhaps shabbier) than a new baby! Lovely portrait Grandma! So wonderful you got to spend time with all of them.
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Exactly, Sallie! Thank you. I have been fortunate, indeed, to be able to spend so much time.
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Beautiful Penny
Ox M.A.
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Thank you so much, Mary Anne.
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Ezra is beautiful! And, it’s quite nice to see the “Real” Penny, in the here and now (first I’ve seen your adult face since I’ve been reading here :)). I think I, too, am at the age where it’s quite alright and pretty comfortable to be “real” and this post set me to Googling on the topic. One article I found is very interesting; quite profound, actually; maybe we should all be striving to be more like this very loved rabbit from the get-go! See: http://www.boundless.org/2005/articles/a0001581.cfm
I also hope you’ll post more baby Ezra photos soon (and maybe an updated peek at Kezzie for good measure).
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Thank you, Karen. He is a cutie. Isn’t it rather rewarding to become who we are at this point in life? I hope that I can make the most of it. Thanks for the link. The article was very interesting and did echo my thoughts. We are so influenced as a society as to how we should look, aren’t we?
Fear not, I will post more when I get home – with Kezzie for good measure.
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Shed a tear today, Penny. How incredibly moving is your comparison. The Velveteen Rabbit is one of my favourite books of all time. And you make it come alive, you and your beautiful new grandson.
Enjoy being real 🙂
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Babies have a tendency to do that, don’t they Kate? Isn’t reading “The Velveteen Rabbit” like meeting up with an old friend? This copy was an old one from our little family that made its way to Katy’s house – just where it needed to be just when I needed to read it. Life is grand. Thank you.
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This is a beautiful post Penny, goosebump making, and summing up what we grandmothers understand so well. I love the sentiments, the book, of course, and the photograph. J.
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Oh, Janice, thank you. You are too kind. I’m back home now, and hope to do some catching up, reading what I’ve missed these few weeks, in the next several days.
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Dear Penny, yours is a reality and a presence that is always real to those of us who come to your blog. Always there is depth of wisdom and fortitude here that invites us to rejoice with you in the pure beauty of life–whether this be the new life of your grandson or the delight in the eyes of your granddaughter or the love shining in your own eyes in that wonderful photograph. And thank you for the quotation. It’s one I’d forgotten and remembering it is so important. Peace.
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Thank you, Dee. Such sentiments coming from someone like you, who seems so very Real to me in your writings and your sense of justice and doing what is right is a very special gift to me this morning. Isn’t it a most wonderful quote?
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Penny, how beautiful! What a lovely post and how proud you must be of your grandchild! Congratulations. Isn’t it lovely when books have such relevance to real life?
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It is lovely, indeed, Sunday, when we pick up such books and they still warm our hearts – and holding an infant at the same time is all the more wonderful! Thank you.
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Perfect. Brilliant. And you are lovely.
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Thank you, thank you, and thank you again, Nan.
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Yia, Yia, you look perfect, he looks perfect. And I’m so glad I read your blog, I’m going to a baby shower and they asked to bring a book for the baby, well, The Velveteen Rabbit is on its way to me, Thank you my friend for the perfect book. And Congrats to the O’Neill’s and the Yenters.
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I’m so glad you read it, too, Sharon. The Velveteen Rabbit would be a perfect book gift for a baby shower. Thank you very much. More pictures soon.
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Ooohh, I clearly remember you reading that very book to me while we were sitting on my couch and I had a big ouch-y thing on my nose that turned out to be my first chicken pox.
I’m sure Kezzie and Ezra will have nice memories of their Yia Yia reading to them too, and I hope they don’t involve chicken pox! But you’ll make it feel better even so….
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I’m impressed that you would remember that, Heather, and it is so nice to be reminded of it. You were a very sweet girl to read to and I always enjoyed it, although it was too bad that the memory of that first pox is with this book.
I’m pretty certain both will enjoy reading. I know Kezzie does already and Ezra was cuddly in my arms, sleeping, as I read. Thank you, Heather.
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