She called him “Tiger” from the first moment she could pronounce the word. Our eldest child and her constant companion. A small, stuffed animal that was a part of all the stories she would tell – and the ones that I would make up for her. It began with his adventures from Africa, when Tiger climbed in my suitcase and smuggled his way home. Maureen and I had just found out we were expecting our first child when I ventured to Rwanda and Kenya with Catholic Relief Services.
To be fair, I think Tiger was a gift from an aunt or a cousin, but when the children are little and need a story, we oblige. Plus, we honestly didn’t remember where he’d come from, so Africa seemed like a good bet.
Tiger was in loads of photos those first few years. Like the animals we all had growing up, he had his own personality. Many nights were spent searching the house for Tiger so the baby, then toddler, then child could finally go to sleep. I honestly have no memory of her in those early years without him.
Then, in August 2010, Tiger was gone. We remember having him in the Costco parking lot on a day that included haircuts (her first “bob”), back to school shopping, and more. We were taking pictures and we think Tiger must have wandered away into the woods looking for an adventure (or, in laymen’s terms, was left on the wall where we were staging our back to school photo shoot).
In the days and weeks that followed, we returned to every one of the locations from that day. We talked to the folks at lost and found, the people who collect the garbage from the parking lots, and we looked high and low – in the woods and in the grass. But Tiger was gone.
I have spent the last ten years looking for him. I searched through every single current and retired Beanie Baby animal. I have done image searches online using the best picture we have of Tiger, sitting quietly next to Winnie the Pooh. I looked through antique stores, all the GUND animals I could find, and, when I am out and about, I often search through those carousels of stuffed animals near the checkout line just in case Tiger (or his twin) shows up.
On Saturday morning, I found him. I don’t know what made me look, but there he was.
On eBay.
Same little pink nose. Same green eyes. After hundreds of searches with all sorts of combinations, I finally stumbled across an entry labeled, “orange cat.” Tiger would not be happy at being called an ordinary cat. I did not investigate the backstory. I did not email the person selling it with questions about where she got him. I just spent a few minutes whispering a prayer of thanksgiving and, with a few clicks, Tiger was on his way back to Connecticut.
Ace Number One has a birthday coming up – she’ll be 15 years old at the end of March and Tiger will be there to celebrate. I imagine I am much more excited that she will be. After all, she’s been without her friend longer than she had him. But he still comes up in conversation once in a while and my hope is that she will be both surprised and thrilled when she opens the box and sees her stuffed friend sitting there. Maybe there is a part of me that hopes by reclaiming some of her childhood, I can somehow pause the rapid pace of her growing up. I need her to feel safe. I need her to be careful. I need her to study and do her homework. I am probably asking too much of a stuffed animal, but this is Tiger, dang it. He can do it.
To set the scene for the birthday surprise, I want to ask you to do me a favor. Could you hand-write a note from Tiger and talk about some great adventure you’ve had? Make it up. Get creative. Use a postcard or a plain piece of paper. It doesn’t have to be long, just a quick note that speaks of an adventure and then end with, “I can’t wait to come home.”
Sign it “T” so it keeps her guessing – or don’t sign it at all. Do not include your own name, please. Keep it anonymous. My hope is that if she receives a few of these, it will build the momentum for Tiger’s triumphant return.
If you don’t have our address, shoot me an email (p(dot)donovan(at)mac(dot)com) and I will send it to you. The birthday is the end of March, so we have some time.
Sounds crazy, I know. But parents always do crazy things for their kids and even crazier for the inanimate objects that make our children happy.
~pjd