A Blast from the Past

Do you remember how much joy your old toys brought you? Wouldn't you want to feel that again? Today I went back in time to 1986, the year my Dad made his famous first trip to Czechoslovakia and came back with lots of goodies that were hard to find in Socialist Romania.

Among them, the famous Red Buffalo, the Yellow Honey Eater - a huge teddy bear in red overalls, my first gold earrings, my Mum's favorite bra and lots more. I was two but that moment is still stuck in my memory : the complete, honest joy of the whole family at the sight of those objects that were so common for Westerners yet so sparse for us.

The teddy bear was taller than I was at the time but even if I outgrew it in size, I still continued to sleep with it cuddled in my arms until much later. I'm afraid the Buffalo had a sadder fate, one that is linked to my first memories : the big boom of the rubber toy bursting under me. It resonated loudly with my childish joy of trying to tame the red buffalo.

Today I read this article about a toy exhibition and realized the treasure I didn't know I had as a child. Kids don't really care about the value of things; they just play in the sand, careless of the mess they make, careless of the toys they break but utterly, truly, carefree and happy. For a moment I felt the same way again, looking at this image :

Maybe the toys haven't survived past my childhood but I still feel the texture of the materials they were made of and the happiness they brought me is something I yearn for.

So, dear reader, what were your favorite childhood toys?