“Can I have that old teddy bear in your closet, Granddad?”,
my eight-year-old granddaughter wanted to know.
“Sitting all alone up on that shelf he looks so sad.

Besides, you are too old to play with teddy bears anyway,
And he looks all worn out, not worth much like if he was new.”
Smiling, I replied, “He can be yours – not now, but someday.

For he’s special – worth more than all the money in the world.
That bear belonged to your Grandmother, whom you don’t remember
since she passed away when you were only a toddling little girl.

On our first date as teenagers, I won that bear for your Grandmother
by throwing baseballs at the state fair. That very night I knew
she’d become my wife, that for me there would never be another.

It took her three more years before she would agree to marry me.
For 50 years Mr. Bear sat on her dressing table, watching her daily
putting on make-up, fixing her hair, making herself as pretty as could be.

Now each morning as I get dressed, Mr. Bear is the first thing
I see, winking at me, reminding me of my beloved darling.
He’s made of life’s most valuable commodity…sweet memories!”