The Truth of Children's Literature

Have you ever been struck by the deep truths found in certain children's stories after reading them again as an adult? One of my favorites for this reason is The Velveteen Rabbit. Two years ago I was a counselor at summer camp and I grabbed a stack of old books from my parent's house to have in my cabin for the summer. One night during mini week I decided to read it as a bed time story to my girls (ages 8-10). I hadn't heard the story probably since it was read to me as a child and I wasn't prepared for the profound truth found in it's pages. I was so struck by it that even in the dark cabin, one of the girls could tell I was getting choked up and asked so innocently, "Are you crying?" The truth is, now as an adult I have experienced the wearing down process of becoming real. Here is an excerpt:

It doesn't happen all at once," said the Skin Horse. "You become. It takes a long time. That's why it doesn't often happen to people who break easily, or have sharp edges, or who have to be carefully kept. Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby. But these things don't matter at all, because once you are Real you can't be ugly, except to people who don't understand.

I hope you all get to experience becoming. I hope that you can accept the wearing down, and loosening of joints and shabbiness that comes with it. Because if you do you will know true love and with that love comes true beauty. Thank you to those of you who have been a part of my becoming process. I love you.