It Pays to Listen

Chapter  6

Lady Jane

 Jennifer's grandmother had given her a beautiful china doll for her birthday. She called her "Lady Jane".  She was a very beautiful, special and very fragile doll.   Her grandmother had made a whole suitcase full of doll clothes just for "Lady Jane" Often she would change her outfits two or three times a day.

Lady Alice

Her best friend Maria had a china doll too. Her doll's name was "Lady Alice". Together the two little girls loved to play dolls and sharing their outfits. One afternoon, while they were playing with their special dolls, Anna, the little girl with crippled feet called and asked if they could come over to her house for some homemade ice cream. Before they left, Jennifer's mother warned them, "You better put your dolls in your bedroom Jennifer and close the door before Tucker gets up from his nap."  But, the girls were so excited about eating ice cream that they didn't listen to Jennifer's mother's warning, and left the dolls on the couch in the family room.

No sooner had they left when little Tucker was up from his nap, heading down stairs to find his mother.  On the way to the kitchen, he noticed the two dolls sitting on the couch. Without thinking Tucker picked up Maria's doll by the neck and starting walking to the kitchen.  On the way, in his socking feet, he slipped and fell to the floor.  The doll went flying out of his hands and landed on the hard tile floor The head of the china doll was severely cracked.  His mother heard the accident and came running out of the kitchen.

"Oh NO! Tucker, what have you done?".  She picked up the doll off the floor and rescued Jennifer's doll on the couch. She was not so much upset with Tucker as she was with Jennifer.  She didn't listen to her warning to put the dolls in a safe place and now look what happened.

Later in the afternoon, the girls arrived back at Jennifer's to finish their play. When they saw their dolls were missing Jennifer called out to her mother, "Where are our dolls, Mommy" 

 "Jennifer", responded Mommy, "You don't have to yell, I am right in the kitchen. You can come in here and talk with me. What is the problem?."  Of course, Mommy knew what the problem was, but she wanted to hear it from the girls.

"We can't find....our....."  Before she could get the words out, Jennifer noticed Maria's "Lady Alice" laying on the counter with her head cracked.

When Maria saw her "Lady Alice's head cracked", she was so upset.  She started to cry and ran home to tell her mother.  Jennifer was MAD at Tucker. "Now, look what you did!  You ruined our play.  Can't you leave anything alone?"

"Jennifer" exclaimed her mother, "Didn't I warn you to put her dolls in your room and close the door?  Why should you be mad at Tucker."

"But Mommy, does Tucker always have to ruin our fun?  I think Maria is going to mad at me and she will never play with me again.  Can't you keep Tucker tied up?"

"Young lady,it is NOT  Tucker's fault.  How many times have I told you to keep your most valuable and breakable toys up high and away from Tucker.  I think you should think about how you can earn some money to help Maria buy a new doll."

"But, Mom, it isn't my doll."

"I know, but when your friends are over to your house, you are responsible to do what is right.  If you know that your doll should be out of Tucker's reach, don't you think your best friend's doll should be also? It could have been your doll's head that was cracked."

"Gee, Mom there goes all my birthday money," complained Jennifer.

From that day on, Jennifer always remembered to keep her most important things up high and away from 'little fingers'.

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