Barbie Collectors Convention
Shari Caudron is known to be one of the most inspirational people, with her contributions towards motivating people to accomplish the things they are passionate about. She is best known for her support towards the people that are interested in writing a book because she believes in the power of the words bringing about a positive change in the world. Shari Caudron disclosed that she’s not regarded as someone who’s passionate themselves but definitely has interests that drive her motivation. Shari Caudron preconceptions towards understanding the essence of the collection were driven by curiosity about the passion involved in adopting this habit. She was intrigued by the motivation people displayed in carrying on this hobby, regardless of what it was for.
In order to investigate further into the core concept for collecting or the passion involved in it, she attended the 22nd National Barbie Collectors Convention. In her words, it was one of the places where she would definitely not be at, by her own choice but was amazed to see big scores of men and women. She was moved by the passion people displayed at the convention, as she saw the collectors as their eyes gleamed with excitement for the four days of doll shopping, numerous workshops, and social events. Caudron wanted to inquire into the emotional attachment these people had with their obsession over something as trivial as collecting dolls but for them, these dolls meant something more than a mere object. To affirm the joy people shared in collecting objects, she intended on interviewing people and the first person she interviewed was Debbie, who was acting as the co-chair for the event and had a total of three thousand Barbie dolls in her collection.
Shari Caudron inquired Debbie about the thing that drove this inspiration within her, the motivation behind spending time towards devoting most of her attention to dolls. Debbie responded to this question with an enthusiastic reply stating that the drive that initiated within them was mostly a result of everything associated with the name “Barbie” and that the collectors including her were mostly crazed for the pink color, clothes, and anything that had a slight link towards Barbie’s. Although the responses that Shari Caudron got from other people differed based on their preference. An example of this is of Brenda Blanchard who stated that she admired Barbie and grew accentuated to it because the Barbie didn’t talk back to her. Most of the interviews she conducted depicted a different response based on each person’s preference towards why they invested both time and money into pursuing a collector’s hobby. One of the people that changed Shari Caudron’s perception towards the doll collection desire was driven by this woman’s response. Judie Stegner, who responded that she had Barbie friends and got influenced by them as she continued to support her ever since her actual friends disappeared from her life. Collecting Barbie’s had helped Judie by building her a new social circle and coping with the death of her only son. Her new friends even made a Barbie Doll that was specifically for her as a symbol of their friendship towards her.
Shari Caudron had a different perception towards the dolls after her visit to the convention and questioning the people attending it. By viewing it from a distance, she understood the perception held towards the dolls, the emotional drive behind each person’s passion and the way with which it aided people with its therapeutic assistance. The noticeable part she noticed during her visit was that childhood memories stand strong since a ninety-six-year-old woman was attending the convention because Barbie held great importance in her life and was her ideal friend during her childhood days.
