Speaking doll

A couple of months back, Sonali discovered "online writing  prompts", an interesting way to let your imagination run. The prompt gives one line of the story and allows you to weave a story around it. Hope you enjoy reading it because I thoroughly enjoyed writing it. I felt as if I was back in school.

    
Speaking doll

I was in downtown one summer morning looking for a few pieces of antique furniture for the new sitting room I was redecorating. Anita, my interior designer, friend  had suggested, "Magical Collection", a new shop that had opened up recently and had got raving reviews in all magazines.

The shop was like a small museum. There were beautiful pieces of old furniture and other antique pieces on the shelves. Surprisingly, the collection had something for all ages. I was fascinated by the old toys lying in one corner. "Are these also antique pieces?" I asked the old sales woman.

"Of course", she replied. "They have been collected from different countries. look at that pretty doll with dark brown curly hair. She has travelled all the way from London. The collector got her from an old English family, he was closing shop so I bought her from him. An ideal gift for a small girl if you have one."

I thought about my five-year-old daughter, Shubhi and all her dolls in the pink doll house. But none of them looked like this one with the brown curly hair like a Golliwog.

When I got the doll home, as I had expected Shubhi was thrilled and she quickly gave her a name."I want to call her Brown Curls", she told me. The doll had a fair and pretty face with little red on her cheeks. Her mouth appeared to be big as if she had opened it to say something and it had frozen.  

For the next few days I saw little of Shubhi. She spent most of her time in her playroom with Brown Curls for company. Infact, I even found the doll snuggled in her bed one night. This was surprising because Shubhi never played with a toy for more than a couple of days.

"Why don't you watch some cartoons for a change. Aren't you bored with your new doll by now"? I  asked Shubhi one morning after she returned back from her nursery class.

"Why should I be bored. Brown Curls tells me better stories than you", she replied angrily "So your doll talk to you also", I said teasing her.

"Yes she does I know all about the English girl and her family that she belonged to earlier". said Shubhi without batting an eyelid.

Knowing Shubhi I knew  she could weave stories within stories. Not wanting to curb her story-telling ability I pretended to believe her.

However, I was in for a surprise the very next day. I was knitting a yellow sweater for  Shubhi sitting in her playroom when Brown Curls suddenly said "You knit so well!" She was in the little bed Shubhi had tucked here into.

"Please make me a wig with the yellow wool. I too want golden hair. I hate my hair. In the toy factory where they were assembling me this stupid and silly old woman stuck Brown hair on my head instead of  golden by mistake. I think her eyes were bad. Betsy that little English girl never played with me. she got all her other dolls new clothes but never for me. None of the other dolls liked me. They called me Golliwog and teased me. I am happy that Shubhi loves me even with my ugly hair and so I tell her stories."

I could see her eyes brimming with tears  and her mouth drooping. Now I was not prepared for this. Shubhi's endless chatter was enough in this house and now her doll turning into her clone.

"I will knit you a golden cap and stitch you a new dress if you promise to stay quiet , " I said pacifying her.

Shubhi was delighted to see Brown Curls in her new polaka dotted dress and her hair in the yellow wool cap. "Wow mom she looks amazing. Just like an English doll now". she squealed.

However, next day she had removed the yellow cap. "I  love Brown Curls with her brown hair. We discussed last night and Brown Curls and I decided that with her brown hair she looks even better."

Brown Curls continued to be in Shubhi's life forever. She even accompanied her to the US when Shubhi left for her undergrad.

Interesting, the doll never spoke to me again and Shubhi never mentioned any of their conversation to me either. I often wonder whether the doll really speak to me or was it my own imagination running wild. But even now I give myself the benefit of doubt for finally I did pick her up from "Magical Collection".