Yesterday was Sesame Street's birthday! In honor of 36 years of groundbreaking children's programming, we give you some of our favorite characters from the show! Who's your favorite Sesame Street character? Let us know who and why and we'll post your writings here!

Big Bird

When you're a kid, the thought of an 8 foot 2 inch bird can be a scary one. Think dinosaur on the loose. But add a splash of canary yellow, a curious nature, large innocent eyes, and a spirit of adventure to the mix and what do you end up with? A huggable, kindred spirit. That's what Big Bird was to me. An immense yellow birdie who saw the world through my eyes—and spoke to me. He could do all the things I wanted to do—write poetry, draw, ride a unicyle, ice skate, roller skate, dance, sing … and he was only 6 years old!!! But he never seemed out of reach—he told me it was OK to make mistakes, to be yourself, and to not have all the answers to life. He reminded me that "Asking is a good way of finding things out!" Come to think of it, I guess Big Bird’s larger-than-life yellow frame still speaks to me.