Stuffed animals may seem childish and silly from the perspective of a college student. College is the first foray into adulthood and stuffed animals are something clearly from childhood. That’s the thing that makes them so great to have as a college student, however. Even when life gets stressful and a little too adult, your stuffed animals will be there to cuddle with, be fuzzy and make life seem a little more childish — seems like the perfect thing to help get a person through a semester at UC Berkeley.

Things can occasionally get quite stressful as a student. Tests, papers and homework along with figuring out how to be an adult is almost too much to handle at times. It would be nice to become a kid again — a time when life was easier and a lot more simple. Holding a stuffed animal is one way to feel like a kid again. For that brief moment of regained innocence, stuffed animals should be thanked.

Another wonderful thing about stuffed animals is that most are soft and fuzzy. They’re nice to hold, squeeze and/or lie with. They’re the perfect napping companion. It’s important to note that not everything from your childhood is good to sleep with. An action figure might be able to bring someone back to when they were a kid, but it would poke them in the ribs if that person tried to sleep with it — all the more reason why stuffed animals are great.

There’s also something a little ridiculous about a college student clutching a teddy bear. This is a good thing, however. The world can get quite serious sometimes, so it’s nice to make things a little silly. It’s difficult to think of the world as only stress, doom and gloom when you’re holding a fuzzy stuffed bunny. Stuffed animals give the opportunity to be childish and silly. It might be a good way to make a semester at UC Berkeley (or just being an adult in general) a little less daunting and serious.

So here’s to the stuffed animal — may they always be soft, fuzzy, and a way to feel like a kid again.