Loved Into Realness
What a 103-year-old rabbit taught me about growing up, falling apart, and why softness might just save us
Originally published in 1922, The Velveteen Rabbit, by Margery Williams, is a children’s book I still reread regularly, as a quiet reminder that it’s okay to be a little broken. When muscles grow, they first have to break down—tiny tears forming through the fibers—before they rebuild, stronger than before. That is the message in the story of The Velveteen Rabbit.
For those who haven’t read it since childhood (or ever), The Velveteen Rabbit follows a toy rabbit who wants nothing more than to become “Real,” a wish he chases through the love of a little boy and the quiet wisdom of the nursery’s oldest toy, the Skin Horse. The version of the book I had as a child is now out of print and very difficult to find, but it was illustrated by Donna Green with beautiful paintings. Green’s art depicts the most precious little stuffed rabbit I had ever seen, maybe have ever seen to this day, and she even paints the magic of being loved, and thereby, the process of becoming Real. This edition is a true treasure. But what’s always stayed with me isn’t just the illustrations, it’s the ache behind it, the lesson about what it really means to grow, to love, and to become Real.
