The story of Miss Hickory is written by Carolyn Sherwin Bailey. Miss Hickory was a doll with a walnut head and an apple twig body. She had a corn cob house in the forest. One day, Crow told Miss Hickory that Ann had gone to Boston with her family to go to school. Miss Hickory didn’t believe him. Then he went to Mr. T. Willard Brown. Mr. T. Willard Brown also said that the family moved away. Crow then also said that Chipmunk moved into her home. Crow showed her Robin’s nest, which was very comfortable for her. Down the tree lived a squirrel. He was very forgetful. In the barn, there lived Mr. T. Willard Brown and the cow. One day the cow had twins, Barn-Heifer and Wild-Heifer. Wild-Heifer had found herself a brother and always was with him. Also, one day Cow ate too much and was sick. The farmer next door cured her. Later on, she met Hen-Pheasant, a bullfrog, and groundhog. After some time, Robin came back with his wife and got Miss Hickory out. Then he went to the squirrel's home and Squirrel ate her head. Then she grew into an apple tree. Finally, Ann came back.
Home is not just a place to live in, but also a place where people have a sense of belonging. Even though the “home” building has fancy or technology-oriented items available, it isn’t called home if it doesn’t provide a feeling of safety or comfort. Miss Hickory was trying to find a permanent home. At first, she lived in the kitchen of her dollhouse. Then, because Ann was moving to Boston, she went to Robin’s nest. When Robin came back, he pecked her out of her house. Then she moved to the squirrel's home, and she had her head eaten by the squirrel. Finally, she went on top of an apple tree and became a scion. In Robin's home, Miss Hickory was not welcomed. In Squirrel’s house, Miss Hickory felt unsafe. When people do not feel welcomed or feel safe, it cannot be home for them even though it looks suitable. In contrast, if people find a place where people over there have similar backgrounds, they can develop a sense of belonging. Such a place could be called home even though the place is tiny or miserable. Just like how Miss Hickory found an apple tree is a suitable home for her. People always want to find a place where they belong to. The size or the appearance of the building does not matter, but the sense of belonging does matter.
It is unavoidable that there are problems throughout society, but people could offer help or seek help from others in a mutual way to solve problems. Even though Miss Hickory is a non-human fictional creature, it actually represents a story about human desire. In the story, Mr. T. Willard Brown called a farmer to cure a Cow from a stomach ache from overeating. Also, Miss Hickory found that Hen-Pheasant was very sad because Cock-Pheasant left her. She helped her form a Ladies Aid Society for the hens. She received help from a crow when she went to McIntosh Lane. In the real world, we are just normal citizens of society. Sometimes we need help from others, or we are able to offer help using our knowledge and skills. When people offer help to others, they feel happy because they have helped someone. On the other hand, the person being helped will also feel thankful because the problem is solved. Helping each other is very essential in society. Supporting each other in the community is a win-win situation. Not only problems can be solved, but also friendships can be generated and developed.
The help in the community improves the change of attitude. When people receive help in the community, they tend to think that others care about them. As a result, they will have positive thoughts about others, which brings the angels out in them. When Crow saw Ann and her family were moving out of the house, Crow suggested to Miss Hickory to find a new home to live in. But Miss Hickory doesn’t take the suggestion. She ended up homeless. Later on, Mr. T confronted Miss Hickory that if she could see trunks closing from the attic, she would know that Ann is moving. Miss Hickory finally realized how stubborn she was and she needed to make a change. In the end, she began to accept the suggestions or receive help from other animals. For example, Crow flew her to McIntosh Lane. If people are stubborn and they don’t listen to others, there will be no benefits and may even result in bad consequences. But if people change their attitude and be open-minded to any suggestions, they will not only gradually develop a sense of belonging, giving them a feeling of “home”, but also friendship will be generated through the interactions. One’s stubbornness can fade away when he discovers how others offer help and care for him.
Although Miss Hickory is a doll, a fictional character, actually this story represents the human desire of finding a home. But home is not just any building that people can immediately move into. People cannot just see the appearance of any house and decide what is their home. It needs to fit in with their personality and has a sense of belonging. To have a sense of belonging, people should not be stubborn. They should be open-minded and take suggestions from others. Being stubborn doesn’t bring benefits, it only brings bad consequences. Instead, people should listen to others when they are trying to help. Such help in the community can change one’s attitude because they begin to feel that people are caring for them, which develops a sense of belonging. That is where the “home” is.
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