When Children Were Children
Talking out loud to paper dolls
By Sharon Hopper 

I have been thinking about my paper dolls all week. It was hard to recall all the different favorites I had but amongst the most favorite were Liz Taylor and Eddie Fisher. I guess that was because they were the heartthrobs of America at the time I was playing with paper dolls. I don’t think they even have such things now. Probably because you would have to use scissors and that would be child endangering these days. Or possibly a weapon. However you want to interpret the item. 

I do remember my mother was great at cutting out the clothes. For some reason she was so perfect with the scissors. I kept them in a shoebox and when they got a bit worn looking she would iron them between wax paper and they would look just like new. 

In order to play with paper dolls you have to carry on a conversation with them. Also one would carry on a conversation with the other dolls who were the friends of the primary dolls. That meant changing your voice and going through all the sound effects of a whole conversation. At the age of 12 I had a great imagination and some great story lines. Liz Taylor was the most beautiful woman in the world at that time and she had some of the most beautiful clothes. She was absolutely my favorite. 

Somehow I cannot imagine today’s children of that age talking out loud to paper dolls. I am still trying to figure out if I was normal or just an odd child. But my friends played with the paper dolls too, so I guess we were just trying to make up for texting today. In some ways my childhood seemed to be only yesterday and actually it was over 60 years ago. A lifetime of change has taken place. Today I was at the library and some parents were talking about their children spending six to eight hours a day playing games and such on electronic gadgets. I guess when one compares childhood activity each generation has their special pastimes. I was in a simpler time when a book of paper dolls cost $2.00, not $800.00 for an I phone and the program to run it. Wow! I was a cheap child to raise. I am afraid that today I would be hard pressed to raise a child. 

Even with my income today I could not afford all this stuff. My children would be laughed at and that would be bad. Glad I was born years ago. Aren’t you?