When my sister in law passed away she left behind a huge collection of porcelain dolls. These were something she had collected over the short span of her life, and they will one day belong to my little girl. They are stored away at my dads house right now, but when she is older we will probably put up some shelves so that she can have them on display in her room. Shes too young now, and I know even up on a shelf they would not be safe. She would love them, but shes very rough. Most of them would be broken.
She just turned five, and someone in our family got her a few porcelain dolls to add to the collection. She loved them at first site, but I explained that they were breakable dolls, and she knew then and there not to touch it too much. A year before someone had given her a few small porcelain dolls, and she broke one of them. She was very sad about it for a long time, and I think she knows that she doesnt want to break any more of them. That doesnt mean I think shes ready to have them in her room yet though.
Though porcelain dolls come in all price ranges, Im pretty sure the ones I have stored away for my daughter were not very expensive when they were first purchases. That doesnt mean they arent worth something now, but that doesnt even matter. These porcelain dolls are worth more than what they are made of. They are a reminder of someone we lost, and for that reason alone they are priceless to us as a family.
I hope that when my daughter is old enough to take care of the porcelain dolls on her own that she treats them well, and perhaps even saves them for her children, if she has any. For some reason many of the things I had as a child are gone. I had a few things I wanted to save but that was just not meant to be. I will be better about these porcelain dolls though, and I hope she will love them as much as my sister in law once did. Though material items could never replace what my little girl lost, but they are certainly something that can give her a glimpse into a life that ended way too soon.
