~ by Rachel Atterholt
Emily was very young when she found her best friend. Jessie was a cowgirl, tough and brave, with a smile that always made her happy. Jessie was there when she was lonely, and when she was sad. Emily loved Jessie. She didn’t have many friends, but Jessie was enough. They were cowgirls together; sleepover buddies, wild horse riders, best friends. Emily even took her to school for the first couple of years. They always rode in the car together, Emily holding Jessie’s hand the entire time – and everything was magical.
Emily met a friend at school. Her name was Amanda, and her face was full of freckles. One day, Emily left Jessie at home by mistake, and she didn’t remember until she got back home again. But she still played all the time with Jessie and read picture books late at night under the covers – and everything was magical.
Emily turned ten, and she made more friends. She stopped bringing Jessie to school because none of her other friends brought their dolls to school. One day, Emily brought her friends over to her house. Jessie was sitting on the bed, as usual. Emily wasn’t paying attention as she grabbed the pillow beneath her and Jessie fell under the bed. Emily was more focused on the new nail polish that Amanda had brought over – and yet things still seemed magical.
Emily turned thirteen, and her love of cowgirls faded away, like the fad it seemed to be. Jessie still lay under the bed, watching the horses on the dresser disappear and makeup take their place. Everything changed to bright neon colors and wild things. Other things were stuffed under the bed- the cowgirl hat that Emily used to never take off, her favorite lunchbox, even her ukulele – and things were less magical.
One day, when Emily was sixteen, she dropped her purse. Things spilled from the bag, rolling beside Jessie. Emily reached under the bed, and her hand found Jessie and her hat. Finally, after so long, she pulled Jessie out and smiled at her. Emily put her in her bag, and they rode in the car together, Emily holding her bag, but holding Jessie too. Emily stopped at the park that she used to visit when she was little and walked there with Jessie. When they got back home, she took Jessie out of her purse and put her and the other items that had accompanied her, under the bed, in a box – and things were no longer magical.
Years later, Emily had a son whose best friends were a cowboy and then, a little later, a space ranger. She had forgotten all about her cowgirl friend. One day, she went into her son’s room to put his basket of laundry inside, and on the bed was a doll. A doll that looked ever so much like her friend. She even had the red hat that used to match her own. Emily picked her up and smiled – somehow, they had found each other again and, despite her age and the fact that she had not seen Jessie in many years, she felt very much like the little girl who’d read picture books under the blankets and held her doll’s hand during car rides. Things didn’t seem to have changed at all. Emily hugged Jessie – and things were magical again.
For more fantastic articles from our latest magazine issue ‘Disney’, please click on the below link:
F&F Winter 2019: Disney