DODO 5 A VERY SPECIAL DOLL

What seemed like many earth hours later, the children, including Corinne, still visibly shaken by her harrowing experience in the CAVERNS of HASTE and CURIOSITY, arrived at the biggest building they had ever seen.

Upon their arrival the Rockmooners had given them what they called a Rockcone to satiate their thirst and hunger. Caleb, especially, licked his with great joy.

“ M-M-M ” he declared, glancing around him. “ This is good- a bit hard, but good. It tastes like strawberries and me I really like strawberries. When… ”

“ S-h-h- Caleb,” intervened Corinne, “ look… look all around - there are millions of shelves… all full of presents that look all the same. ”


Corinne turned towards the leader, asking him, “ What’s this all about - all these boxes wrapped up like presents looking exactly alike? ”

“ As you well know, ” he replied, “ you are in the COUNTRY OF THE DOLLS. In the millions of similar boxes around you and in millions of others in various buildings scattered throughout our valley, there is a very special doll, one we have fabricated in our factories. We call it the IT DOESN’T MATTER DOLL. ”

“The domaterdoll” interrupted Caleb. “That’s funny, funny,” he said, all the while laughing.

“Caleb, be polite- the Rockermooner leader is being very serious. This is not the time for fooling around,” cut in Christian, afraid that his little cousin would insult their hosts.

Reading the situation, before Caleb could rejoinder, the chief said, “Do not worry about it. We have given our new doll this name after a lot of serious thought. Our research shows that the people on your Earth have a good sense of humor and like hard-to-pronounce names, tongue twisters they call them. They like jingles, and bizarre turn-of- phrases and funny names too, as your young cousin has just proven. They seem to be very fond of anything catchy. Hence one reason for so naming the doll.”

“We are very anxious to see,” he added, “how many ways your children can find to say our doll’s name. There is not a doubt in our minds that these will be numerous and that many will bring a smile to the faces of parents all over your world.”

“This name, let me point out to you, is a rather ingenious way on the part of our specialists to capture the attention of people even before they have opened the box containing the doll,” he quickly added.

“ The IT DOESN’T MATTER DOLL, ” repeated Corinne pensively, slowly stretching out and savoring each vowel. “ Me- I have a roomful of dolls and I’ve never heard of such a doll, ” she blurted out, her tiny fists nervously kneading her stomach.

“ I agree little one. You do not yet have this doll in your room because we have not distributed it across the universe yet? ”

“ But why-why are these dolls hidden in all of these boxes so special? ” persisted Corinne.

“ In these identical boxes,” said the leader, speaking slowly and making the greatest effort possible to make himself understood, “ in each one of these boxes exactly alike is a DIFFERENT doll- for the most part. Those destined for sale in your stores come from all corners of your Earth. Some are white, some are black, some are yellow and some are red. Others are any blend of these colors. Where they come from people speak different languages, practice different religions, and have different customs. Some are tall, others short; some are blond, others dark…”

He paused for a few seconds, letting his words sink in, and then continued, “ When the children of your planet go to the store with their parents to buy one, they are going to buy a box like all the others. But the doll inside is going to be a surprise.”

Christian, who had been listening attentively and with patience, peered at the leader and said, “ You said ‘DIFFERENT doll’. Then you added the words‘ for the most part.’ What did you mean?”

“I see that not only have you the capacity to hear my friend but also to listen. Very well. Some of these identical boxes do contain the same doll, but there are enough different dolls to prevent the same child from choosing the same one should he buy more than one. And if this should happen, and the way of the universe being the way it is, it definitely will, you will be able to go to the exchange site on your Internet that the company we have entrusted our treasure to has in place to address this problem.”

“We have had to repeat certain dolls because it would be asking too much of any company to produce the millions of totally different dolls which will be required to fill the global demand for our doll.”

Corinne, who had been put on hold a question she wanted answered while listening to Christian and the Rockmooner leader chose the moment of silence that followed to ask, and this with pretty much the same tone her brother had used, “You said ‘surprise’- but how ‘surprise’? - I don’t understand.”

“Because until you open the box you will have absolutely no idea as to the identity of the doll, and this, according to us, and we hope also according to you, has no importance. In fact, it is this that will determine the success of our doll in your world…”

“But do you think that choosing blind like this has any chance of succeeding on Earth?” asked Christian, his face one of concern and doubt.

“Yes!” replied his host with the greatest confidence. “Buying blind, as you so aptly call it, is something with which humans are familiar. In Canada, where you come from, and in the big country just to the south of you, children and adults have been buying hockey and baseball cards for years in packages in this very manner. This way of buying is certainly no stranger to you… Perhaps when you are home, you and your parents or friends and teachers in your classes can think of other examples of buying blind.”

“ Now let me finish what I started to explain to you a while ago before all your excellent questions. What is important is not the color, the language, even the sex-all such things do not matter.” And with the greatest insistence, he very slowly repeated, “ IT DOESN’T MATTER. What does matter is the goodness of the heart. This is the only way to measure all creatures in the universe. And this is what we hope to teach with the IT DOESN’T MATTER DOLL.”

His gaze now wandering over them, he asked, “ Do you understand my friends? ”

Christian, Corinne and Caleb looked closely upon this new friend, as different from them in appearance as they could imagine. Yet he is so good, they thought. And, suddenly, they understood. They looked at each other and smiled.

The Rockmooners, seeing that the children understood, started to dance with unbridled joy on their almost invisible feet. And Christian, Corinne and their cousin Caleb accompanied them in this celebration of fraternity.

“ Corinne, would you like to have one, to take home with you? ” asked the Rockmooner leader.

“ Yes! Yes! ”

“ And me too,” blustered Caleb, always licking his Rockcone.

“ And you Christian, would you like one too? ”

“ Well maybe I’m a bit too old for dolls, ” replied Christian, somewhat shy at being seen as being young enough to want a doll.

“ Ah! Come on big macho! ” teased Corinne, that mischievous grin on her face.

“ Well okay then, but no teasing, understood? ”

“ These dolls which you will be taking home will be for the moment invisible, like your Magic Television. Again, one day, you will come to understand why this is necessary. ”

“ NOW, come with me and choose whichever box you want. And remember especially, whatever your choice… ”

And all together, laughing, they yelled out, “ IT DOESN’T MATTER! ”

Corinne, bursting with anticipation, was the first to choose.

“ Open- quick Corinne! ” cried out Caleb, as excited as his cousin.

Remembering why she had fallen into the HASTY CAVERNS Corinne hurried, but slowly, and then the brightest smile lit her face. She looked at her surprise doll for several long heartbeats and then taking her in her arms, she squeezed her tenderly against her chest.

“ I didn’t know it would be such pleasure to choose an IT DOESN’T MATTER DOLL, ” she said simply, tears running down her cheeks. “ Christian, could you please read me what the paper she’s holding in her hand says. ”

“ Yes Corinne. Here goes--- Hello. My name is Marie and I come from Haiti. My country is very beautiful, but, unfortunately, it is also very poor. When it is not an hurricane that almost destroys it, it is something else, sometimes even those who are in a position to come to our aid. Despite this, we have a lot of hope for our future. There are many people all over the world who are trying to help us. This year, for example, the good missionaries who live in our village are going to build a new well with money they have received from abroad. And next year with more money from rich countries and help from men from these same countries they are going to build a school for our small village. I’m so anxious. I want to go to school. That- that’s me. Do you, you who have chosen me, do you want to take care of me and love me forever? ”

“ Yes! Yes! my beautiful doll. Yes! Yes! I want to, ” exclaimed Corinne, her face now covered with tears.

Corinne took a long minute to compose herself, and then cried out, “ WOW! And you Christian, and you Caleb, which doll do you have in your box? ”

“ Just a second,” came the answer.

“ And here… Oh Boy! I’ve got a little girl who comes from… let me read… who comes from…I don’t know this place…I’ll have to ask Papa or go on the Net.. who comes from Maghreb.”

“ And me Christian… read quick… ”

“ M-mm… you Caleb… you have a little boy from Arizona… that I know… it’s in the United states… Pépére and Mémere went on a trip once…they adored it there, ” replied Christian without taking a breath.

The Rockmooner leader looked at our three adventurers very closely, a smile lighting his barely perceptible face, saying “Our research shows that many of your doll companies have dolls that have birth certificates. Our dolls are born when a child opens the box he has chosen. Instead of a birth certificate we have chosen to give our dolls an identity paper, that is, a paper which talks a bit about who they are, where they come from on your beautiful planet- and believe me it is of the utmost beauty…”

“We hope,” he pursued as if he had given the matter a great deal of thought, “we hope that this identity paper will pique the interest of your children enough to send them to their computers or books to learn more about the place on your planet where their doll comes from. We are convinced that the more they learn about other people the more tolerant of them and others they will become.”

He terminated with this observation, “Again our research shows that the children of the Earth are developing reading and computer skills by the day. This is why we are so confident that understanding and tolerance will eventually win the day…”

Not long later, the children, exhausted from their day, found themselves reunited with their precious MAGIC TELEVISION, which had been with them during this adventure, though almost completely silent At this moment, however, their television said, “I heard and understood everything. I was born in Arizona… but that is another story…”

Before passing through the screen into the cabin, they took one last look at their hosts, and with a mix of joy and sadness in their hearts said, Thank You! Au Revoir! We are anxious to see the IT DOESN’T MATTER DOLL in our stores… ”

As they passed into the cabin they heard the Rockmooner leader say, “ If you are ever again in this area, say, to visit the valley of the Easter Bunny, come say hello. We might be of help. There are many dangers to watch out for in that valley… and all others on this side of the moon… ”

DODO 6, HOME!, the conclusion to our story, will be posted shortly...