第三篇 Love Through Time
愛穿越時光
A Doll for Great-grandmother
傑奎琳·希奇 / Jacqueline Hickey
When my grandfather died， my 83-year-old grandmother， once full of life， slowly began to fade. No longer able to manage a home of her own， she moved in with my mother， where she was visited often by other members of her large， loving family (two children， eight grandchildren， 22 great-grandchildren and two great-great-grandchildren). Although she still had her good days， it was often hard to arouse her interest.
One chilly December afternoon three years ago， my daughter Meagan， then eight， and I were settling in for a long visit with “GG，” as the family called. her， when she noticed that Meagan was carrying her favorite doll.
“I， too， had a special doll when I was a little girl，” she told a wide-eyed Meagan， “I got it one Christmas when I was about your age. I lived in an old farmhouse in Maine， with Mom， Dad and my four sisters， and the very first gift I opened that Christmas was the most beautiful doll you’d ever want to see.”
“She had an exquisite， hand-painted porcelain face， and her long brown hair was pulled back with a big pink bow. Her eyes were blue as blue could be， and they opened and closed. I remember she had a body of kidskin， and her arms and legs bent at the joints.”
GG’s voice dropped low， taking on an almost reverent tone. “My doll was dressed in a dainty pink gown， trimmed with fine lace. But what I especially remember was her petticoat. It was fine batiste， trimmed with rows and rows of delicate lace. And the tiny buttons on her boots were real. Getting such a fine doll was like a miracle for a little farm girl like me — my parents must have had to sacrifice so much to afford it. But how happy I was that morning！”
GG’s eyes filled and her voice shook with emotion as she recalled that Christmas of long ago. “I played with my doll all morning long. She was such a beautiful doll... And then it happened. My mother called us to the dining room for Christmas dinner and I laid my new doll down， ever so gently， on the hall table. But as I went to join the family at the table， I heard a loud crash.”