Hello Kitty

When I was milling around at the Japanese art exhibit the other day and saw a little Hello Kitty tucked in the corner I had to smile. Somehow this small kitten without a mouth - which by the way, is because she speaks from her heart - is everywhere in my home. I never expected to see a toy from my childhood be more popular now than it was when I was little.

As a young girl I wasn’t a big Hello Kitty fan. It’s not that I didn’t like her; she just wasn’t a toy I played with. Because of my unfamiliarity with her I have purposely not decorated their lives with this cute kitten. But once I saw that they adored her, I had to allow them to collect her. Why? Because I have really tried to let my children have their own childhood and not make them repeat mine. I know you know what I mean. When you have children, it’s like you get a “do over” and it’s tempting to fill their childhood with everything you always wanted from your childhood. The problem is they didn’t get the memo and don’t know the rules. They want what you don’t and don’t want what you do! It isn’t easy to let go of that dream. But I try. I figure someone has to be the adult.

So I’m proud to say I have come to terms with my children’s fascination with Hello Kitty. In fact just the other day I bought a Hello Kitty water bottle for my daughter to take to preschool. Because I love my children, that little kitten is growing on me!

Sheila Cason, MD