Before I had a
computer I had a word processor, and in 1992, I began to write
poetry. I would print out the poems then pepper my friends and
family, far and wide, with them. No one seemed to object, but
after awhile I ran out of friends to send my poems to. One of
the poems I wrote and sent out was one called, "Teddy Bears,"
found at the end of this story.
Okay. That Teddy Bear
Poem bounced around from here to there, and seemed to bring
pleasure to a lot of people. Then I got the surprise of my
life. I got an E-mail from someone I had never heard of
before. She told me about a man and his wife, John and Hazel,
who had started a tradition of making Teddy Bears, not to
sell, but to bring comfort. At first they made the Teddy Bears
for friends and family, but like me with my poems, they soon ran out of
folks to make their bears for.
John called the bears he and his wife made,"Hazel's
Bears," as she is the one who began the project. However,
Hazel became ill with blindness and soon after, with
Alzheimer's. That's when the idea came to John to turn his
Teddy Bear project into bringing comfort for the ill and
invalid.
One day a friend of John's handed him my poem, "Teddy
Bears." He read the poem to Hazel. It brought her such joy
that John got the idea that he would like to attach the
Teddy Bear poem, to every Bear they made. His wife died
in April 2002, but John still carried on.
John was working as a volunteer at the Museum in Burnaby, British
Columbia, Canada, and he mentioned his idea of attaching the
poem, "Teddy Bears," to the head worker there. She
said: "You know, John, that is a great idea, but the poem
is copyrighted, so you must have permission from the author to
use the poem." John hadn't thought of that, but he asked
her how he could get Helen Dowd, the author's, permission.
After much research they found my E-mail address. When I
received the E-mail, I was happy to give permission for John
to attach my poem to his Bears.
As a result, I was invited to the very first annual Teddy
Bear Day Convention at the Burnaby Museum, where I met John. He had done
the Teddy Bear poem up on a pretty page and had printed out
several copies. For a donation of a couple of dollars, John
gave out the poems to the people who came. The donations did
not go to John, not even for materials to make the bears. From
his own meagre senior's pension he took the Teddy Bear project on
as his own undertaking. All donations received go to a
worthy cause, that of helping out the ill and invalid. And the
Teddy Bears, whom he called "Hazel's Bears",
although his wife had passed on, were on display for people to
see. I loved them! Each Teddy is different, each seeming to take on a
"personality" of its own.
During that convention, people flooded by to see the display, and when they were
handed a poem, many of them wanted me to sign it, which I
happily did. I spent a delightful couple of hours there at the
Museum, hours I shall treasure forever.
John called all his Bears "Joel", a combination of
John and Hazel. My Joel sits on top of my computer. He
is adorable, his arms outstretched, waiting for someone to
hug.
Teddy Bears
Teddy Bears are fuzzy folk: They’re
comforting to touch.
On days that you are feeling down,
they’re there for you to clutch.
If you should ever need a
hug, or feel you’d like to cry,
Then grab a cuddly Teddy
Bear—there's always one close by.
Your Teddy Bear is
your best friend. He loves you as you are.
He’ll never tell
you what to wear, (or how to drive a car).
On days you
think your clothes are tight, and you are feeling fat,
Just
tell it to your Teddy Bear: sit down and have a
chat.
Teddy Bears are loyal folk. They’ll never
criticize.
They will not tell you how to eat: they’re VERY,
VERY wise.
Your Teddy won’t condemn you; he doesn’t mind
your shape;
And he will never run from you, or from your
woes escape.
Teddy Bears are courteous folk. They will
not interrupt.
They’ll never say, “I told you so!” or cut
you off, abrupt.
Your Teddy Bear will not get mad if you
embrace a friend,
Or if you stay out late one night, or the
budget overspend.
Teddy Bears aren’t greedy folk;
they’d never steal a treat.
And they will never cheat at
games--or EVER, EVER beat.
Teddy Bears are silent folk;
they listen very well;
And they will never breathe a word
of secrets you may tell.
Teddy Bears are faithful
folk--they never turn on you.
‘Though you may toss them to
and fro’ they’ll always stay true-blue.
So if you’re
feeling all alone, like you haven’t got a friend,
Then get
yourself a TEDDY BEAR. He’ll stay with you to the end.
© Helen Dowd.
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