Barred Barbie (second entry in my project)
I have returned home safely and have spent a good amount of time catching up with loved ones and resting. However, I am behind in some NZ travels, so you will find that before I talk about my experience at home and change this blog's format to match it. Thank you all for supporting me through this life-changing adventure.
Mathijs remembered in great detail how his six year old self had to play covertly in the cupboard with his sister's dolls. His father wanted him to play with toys normally associated with boys, but Mathijs only wanted to braid the hair of the forbidden Western Barbie.
To do so, he had to make sure everyone was either away from the house or at least busy with something in which they would not need him. Mathijs then had to close the doors surrounding the cupboard area before commencing to playing with Barbie.
We reenacted this situation upstairs in the guest bedroom that had a closet in a corner. While not an actual cupboard, the area gave that controlled, storage feeling the memory required.
Mathijs walked through the hallway, checked the nearby doors and went into the room where the closet stood. He took the Barbie he bought for the occasion (unfortunately, not a Western Barbie) out and commenced to play with its accessories and hair.
The first time he went through the process he would instinctively look up every once and a while at the door leading to the hall as if checking on the family that could ruin his fun. However, like in his childhood, the more times he played with the dolls the safer he felt doing it and turned his complete focus to Barbie's hair.
As you can see in the second photograph, Mathijs im greatly on perfecting Barbie's braids. His intensity permeated to me; I wanted to watch his work in progress more than photograph it.
After the third reenactment, we sat down to view the photographs. I wondered as Mathijs viewed the photographs if they would affect his memory of the occasion because he remembered his childhood so vividly.
Thankfully, the photographs penetrated the already conscious memory. He started to remember how important having three even strands of hair for braiding and playing with hair overall was to him. Mathijs's sister would never let him play with hers so he took it out on Barbie.
Plus, he remembered feeling so free being able to play with this doll but confused by it as well. He couldn't help but wonder at that time if it would have actually been that bad for a boy to play with dolls.
Mathijs remembered in great detail how his six year old self had to play covertly in the cupboard with his sister's dolls. His father wanted him to play with toys normally associated with boys, but Mathijs only wanted to braid the hair of the forbidden Western Barbie.
To do so, he had to make sure everyone was either away from the house or at least busy with something in which they would not need him. Mathijs then had to close the doors surrounding the cupboard area before commencing to playing with Barbie.
We reenacted this situation upstairs in the guest bedroom that had a closet in a corner. While not an actual cupboard, the area gave that controlled, storage feeling the memory required.
Mathijs walked through the hallway, checked the nearby doors and went into the room where the closet stood. He took the Barbie he bought for the occasion (unfortunately, not a Western Barbie) out and commenced to play with its accessories and hair.
The first time he went through the process he would instinctively look up every once and a while at the door leading to the hall as if checking on the family that could ruin his fun. However, like in his childhood, the more times he played with the dolls the safer he felt doing it and turned his complete focus to Barbie's hair.
As you can see in the second photograph, Mathijs im greatly on perfecting Barbie's braids. His intensity permeated to me; I wanted to watch his work in progress more than photograph it.
After the third reenactment, we sat down to view the photographs. I wondered as Mathijs viewed the photographs if they would affect his memory of the occasion because he remembered his childhood so vividly.
Thankfully, the photographs penetrated the already conscious memory. He started to remember how important having three even strands of hair for braiding and playing with hair overall was to him. Mathijs's sister would never let him play with hers so he took it out on Barbie.
Plus, he remembered feeling so free being able to play with this doll but confused by it as well. He couldn't help but wonder at that time if it would have actually been that bad for a boy to play with dolls.