a lot the last couple of weeks. We've had some great conversations about it.If you've never read it, the quick story is...
Corduroy, a toy bear at a department store, waits for someone to take him home. After hearing a conversation between a mom and daughter he realizes that he is missing a button. He searches all night for his missing button to no avail.
The same little girl comes back the next day, after counting her own money, to buy "the bear she always wanted".
My favorite part, and the one I keep thinking back to, is after the little girl Lisa brings Corduroy back to her house. She brings him straight to her room. She sews a button on his overalls and says,
"I like you the way you are," she said, "but you'll be more comfortable with your shoulder strap fastened.""I like you the way you are," she said.
So much that I love about this simple line...
I love that she saw his button was missing, but he was still the "bear she always wanted".
She knew the button was gone and still went home and counted her money.
She didn't ask the saleslady for a discount when she bought him...she took him just the way he was.
She didn't act like the button was still on. She knew it was gone and liked him all the while.
She didn't need the button on, but knew that he would be more comfortable with one sewn on.
It seems that Corduroy already felt unwanted (the 2nd page said "but no one ever seemed to want a small bear in green overalls") and then realized he was missing a button. Possibly he thought that a button was needed to be loved, but in the end it wasn't true.
Because of her words the book says that Corduroy then knew he had a friend.
I think that this is love in it's purest form... Before being "fixed" or "healthy" or "whole" (or even if that never happens), to be liked "just the way you are".
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