学进去

I hurried into the local store to get some last minute Christmas gifts. Surprised at the prices of the toys, I wondered if the grandkids would even play with them.

In the doll aisle (通道) , I saw a little boy about 5 holding a lovely doll. He kept touching her hair and held her gently. He counted (数) his money with his aunt but found out it was not enough. Then his aunt asked the boy to wait and left.

Then I talked to him and knew the doll was for his sister who was in heaven because of a car accident. His mother was going to be with her so he hoped his mother could take the doll to her. He also wanted his mother to take his photo with her so she wouldn’t ever forget him. He said he hoped to buy a white rose as well because mom loves white roses very much.

My heart nearly stopped beating. Noticing my sadness, the boy lowered his head and stopped talking. I reached into my purse and pulled out some bills and asked, “Shall we count your money again?” He grew excited and said, “Yes, I just knew it had to be enough”. Quietly I put my money in with his and we began to count it. Of course it was more than enough for the doll. He bought both the doll and a white rose. It was a great relief (宽慰) to find the smile on his face.

Two days later I read in the newspaper about a drunk driver hitting a car and killing a little girl and the mother. On the photo, the mother was holding a lovely white rose, the beautiful doll, and the picture of the little boy in the store.

The love that little boy had for his little sister and his mother was touching. I realized “We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.”