When I was a little girl, I received a small all-rubber doll for Christmas. I loved that doll so very much. One day we went on a family trip, and I left my doll in her little cradle out on our porch to sleep in the fresh air. When we returned, our dog had chewed the arms and the legs completely off the doll. I cried for days. I searched for this doll on the many antique-shopping trips that my husband and I have gone on, and even bought a small doll that looked somewhat like that special one I owned long ago.

A couple of years ago, many years after having this doll, I spied the exact same doll in an antique store not far from my home. Needless to say I bought her and I do treasure her. She reminds me of the many good times I had with my little doll when I was small myself.