frivolity Archives - Starhorsepax Designs

Are Teddy Bears and other Hobbies Frivolous?

Frivolous. Dictionary definition: carefree and not serious. It’s antonym is considered: serious or important.

Today, I came to the ironic realization the other day that ‘frivolity’ is actually extremely important. And this is how it came about:

I was scrolling through teddy bear images, just to brighten a gray day. And I came upon the headline about the Boyd’s Bear store in Pennsylvania closing. More people out of work and darn it, I’ll never get to visit. But it was the comments that really drew my eye.

There were comments calling teddy bears and teddy bear stores frivolous. The attitude was that teddy bears were a waste of time. After all, they are a toy or collector item. They usually just sit and look cute. This got me to thinking. Are they ‘pointless’ in today’s society? And suddenly I was indignant. I thought of people jumping up and down in war paint at football games. I thought about those same people turning up their nose at those of us who are science fiction and fantasy fans and convention. I thought of people who hunt for sport. And what about people who chase a little white ball around a golf course as a hobby. I suddenly wondered who is one person to claim another’s hobby is frivolous.

In this modern world we fret about war, about gun control and paying the bills. We may have a roof over our heads and food, but that doesn’t mean we have all we need. True, we have more than many. But we have a spiritual and emotional needs too. And all that stress takes it’s tole on our well being, on our emotions and even our physical health. Without frivolity, without laughter and smiles, we would self destruct.

Nearly all hobbies have one thing in common: the ability to get us to relax. Most have another feature as well, they improve our skills in some area. Maybe it’s hand and eye coordination, or creativity, problem solving or physical education. But they are all ‘play’ for the one who loves to do them.

I can’t imagine that anything that keeps us from self destructing, calms our tattered, overworked nerves and keeps us healthy is truly unimportant. So I’ll keep my teddy bears, thank you. And when I can’t buy, I’ll look and draw. Because it relaxes me. And that is anything but frivolous.