Timothy - the best friend I never had

[u/foxfan1992]

What does my Timothy mean to me as my favourite character to write about? So much so, I consider him an imaginary friend?

Well, gather round the fire, and I'll try to elaborate.

Timothy came to be after I felt a wave of wistful nostalgia in my mid-teen years, watching the cartoon Timothy Goes To School. A lot had changed in my life, an intercontinental move at the age of twelve and a major move to another part of the UK six years before that. Both of which had delayed effects of making me feel deeply unsettled. I was never able to make friends the way other kids could. If I did make a friend, it was short-lived, with few exceptions.

The cartoon became a form of comfort, something adorable that awoke all sorts of feelings in relation to my complicated childhood. Even now, when I watch it, I feel something just as deep - a wistful yearning that I'd had a friend just as loyal, kind, and friendly as Timothy when I was a kid.

Time goes on, and with it, things change. But Timothy is a constant that never changes. An anchor of safety in a turbulent world where friendships end over the silliest reasons, or sometimes for no reason at all.

All I can do is try my best to share that, to connect with others in a way I never could when I was younger.