Is it weird to rescue and fix up an abandoned stuffed animal?

I passed by an abandoned stuffed panda in a parking lot today, and found myself feeling really sad about it. I always loved stuffed animals as a kid, and still have a few that I was particularly attached to when I was young. So seeing one abandoned and no longer loved made me so sad.

It was kind of dirty from being on the ground and missing an eye, and I ended up leaving it at first. But I couldn’t shake the feeling of sadness about it, so I ended up going back and bringing it home. I put it through the washing machine twice (once with bleach and once without) to make sure it was thoroughly clean and sanitized, got some new eyes and a new nose at a local craft store, replaced them, and sewed it back up. It feels kind of weird to want to help a stuffed animal that’s been abandoned, but it made me happy to be able to transform and repair it. I feel kind of insecure that this brought me joy, so is this weird?

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76% Normal
Based on 17 votes (13 yes)
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Comments ( 12 )
  • momgetthecamera

    Maybe you are highly sensitive. I used to get really sad for stuffed animals I saw on the ground too. Maybe it makes you think of being a child. Maybe fixing it makes comforts you also like you are comforting yourself. I can't put it into words, but i understand you.

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  • Tommythecaty

    I don’t know why I found this so sweet.

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    • litelander8

      Bc it is a proper example of sweetness.

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  • bbrown95

    I think it's sweet!

    I tend to almost have a sort of sympathy for certain inanimate objects as well, and yes, it is sad to see an abandoned stuffed animal. They resemble beings in that they have faces, they're often used to comfort children and are like a friend to those children, and movies like Toy Story certainly don't help matters, either.

    I've done several similar things. I actually remember picking out a rather tattered stuffed animal when I was younger because I felt sorry for it. I also can't stand to see them face down on the ground in stores, so pick them up and place them on shelves.

    I also nearly cried when I saw minor rust forming in the wheelwells of my first car (which I still have and love), as well as some chips in the paint from years of driving and pebbles hitting it and such. I did something stupid as a teen that left a mark on the interior that I still feel awful about. That car has been with me everywhere since it was only a few years old, and it just hurts to see it age, plus it's taken such good care of me and I repaid it by leaving that mark! I also felt bad for putting 200k on it, lol! I know this is something I've owned for a long time and didn't find abandoned, but it's an inanimate object I have sympathy for.

    I can't stand to see things destroyed that were probably very loved by someone at one point, either. Seeing houses demolished makes me sad because that was someone's cherished home (and I've had nightmares about finding out my childhood home that I absolutely hated leaving and still miss was demolished), seeing cars crushed, wrecked, etc. makes me sad because that was someone's first car, first new car, a car they were very excited about, etc.

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  • Bluishorange

    It probably fell off a stroller unnoticed, or a dog dropped it. These things are rarely abandoned, but lost. You should put up found signs.

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  • Somenormie

    People throw away things for variety of reasons

    1) Because they don't need it anymore

    Or

    2) They threw it because it was taking too much space.

    If you like this, have you ever considered working in an animal rescue place thingy?

    If they were considering to throw it away the options could've been simple, they could have sold it to get some money.

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  • RoseIsabella

    I have an old Gund panda bear that has been a great comfort to me in harsher times. I think it was one of those stuffed animals that they gave away at Christmas time from Macy's if you spent a certain amount, or something.

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  • chuy

    No, not at all.

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  • my_life_my_way

    Very weird, over sensitive and over emotional of you to get sad about it. It is an inanimate object.

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    • bbrown95

      I wouldn't say that. Lots of people are sentimental towards inanimate objects or even have a certain sense of sympathy towards them (some more than others, of course). It's a sign of a big heart, is all. It's certainly harmless.

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    • LloydAsher

      Children feel something for their stuffed animals. But just a random one lying on the ground? Let it rest in a trashcan

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  • KholatKhult

    https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMJkQqcTe/

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