When I was two my parents took me to a toy store; we were on a day trip. I can somehow still remember the store and the bridge we crossed to get to it. (I’m from Cape Cod, Massachusetts so it was either the Bourne or Sagamore Bridge.) To this day I feel the excitement of a little kid when thinking about my dad taking the teddy bear off the shelf for me. I loved that teddy bear, Beary, more than anything. I became so attached to it that it became impossible for me to sleep without Beary in my arms every night. When my dad took Beary off the shelf in the toy store he was brand new. His fur was a shiny, soft, honey color. The Teddy Bear’s eyes were brown (plastic) with black pupils. There was a red ribbon tied around his neck in a bow. I had my mom cut it off though. When I squeezed him, he was like a fluffy pillow. His paws were heavy and filled with tiny little bead-like things. The claws were marked by four stitches on each foot. The bear’s nose was hard plastic, which was covered in soft velvet. As a little girl I loved traveling and discovering new places to explore; especially day trips. During the day I was independent and nothing could stop me. I would go home and sleep in my own bed but being in the dark was the scariest situation for me to be in as a child. When I was going to bed and it was dark that was a different story. Beary was always there to give me confidence. At some point I dreamt that Beary fought off monsters while I was sleeping. This made it very easy to go to bed. If I was sleeping at a relative’s house or a hotel, though, it was terrifying. There were new scary noises that only seemed audible when the lights were off. I would squeeze Beary tightly and hide under my covers. After a little while the fear would disappear because I knew that Beary was going to keep me safe. All of this surprised my parents sometimes because I was always so fearless during the day. At, night though, I could not sleep without