When you’re a kid, you don’t consider the profound effect certain things will have on your life. You don’t analyze how a television show might make you feel 20 years down the road. You don’t even appreciate the overall message of certain things. As a kid, you just know what you like and that you like it, no rhyme or reason. As a kid, the innocence of everything is just that: you take everything at face-value and you like it until the next cool thing comes along and then you like the next thing.

Looking back on my childhood, there were so many things that influenced me. The music, the toys, my friends, teachers, and books. Oh, the books! I loved to read as a kid; I wanted so badly to be a character in some of the books I read. I wanted to create those books, devour those books and just be “one” with the books.

Of course, I read Judy Blume books with fervor. I felt like I was getting away with something reading her young adult and adult books. I felt that I had Scoliosis like Deenie, and I prayed to God to start my period like Margaret. Even before my Judy Blume days, there was Ann M. Martin. There was no way I could have guessed that a book series could affect me as much as “The Babysitters Club.”

I remember getting the order forms for the books at school and investigating the leaflet, picking and choosing the books I wanted and would have to beg for. These order forms were given a few times a year, and each time I was in heaven. The smell of the order forms, the titles it offered. There was every kind of book, poster, and magazine inside. This was my introduction to “The Babysitters Club.”

Once I received Kristy’s Big Idea #1, my life changed. I knew I had to be a part of this club. I knew I wanted Claudia Kishi as a best friend. I knew I wanted to babysit (not really, but figuratively), and I wanted to pay dues and earn money.  There were so many things “The Babysitters Club” taught me as a young girl that has made an impact on my life now. The characters (babysitters) were individuals. They worked hard, and they cared for each other as friends. My life now mimics “The Babysitters Club” more than it did when I was a kid.

The characters in the books instilled a work ethic that I didn’t appreciate when I was younger. The girls had a core of family and friendship and that is an important aspect of my life. Each character had something special about them that I now know is an important aspect of people. This is what makes people unique and amazing. Some of the things the characters went through, showed me that life isn’t always easy. In the end, though, they made it through. They encompassed girl power and growth. How was I to know that this book series would affect my life in so many ways? As a kid, you like what you like. I loved these books and am still influenced by their messages as an adult.