“Did this come from your shop？” she asked.
Pete raised his eyes to hers and answered softly， “Yes， it did.”
“Are the stones real？”
“Yes. Not the finest quality—but real.”
“Can you remember who it was you sold them to？”
“She was a small girl. Her name was Jean. She bought them for her older sister’s Christmas present.”
“How much are they worth？”
“The price，” he told her solemnly， “is always a confidential matter between the seller and the customer.”
“But Jean has never had more than a few pennies of spending money. How could she pay for them？”
“She paid the biggest price anyone can ever pay，” he said. “She gave all she had.”
There was a silence then that filled the little curio shop. He saw the faraway steeple， a bell began ringing. The sound of the distant chiming， the little package lying on the counter， the question in the eyes of the girl， and the strange feeling of renewal struggling unreasonably in the heart of Pete， all had come to be because of the love of a child.
“But why did you do it？”
He held out the gift in his hand.
“It’s already Christmas morning，” he said. “And it’s my misfortune that I have no one to give anything to. Will you let me see you home and wish you a Merry Christmas at your door？”
And so， to the sound of many bells and in the midst of happy people， Pete Richard and a girl whose name he had yet to hear， walked out into the beginning of the great day that brings hope into the world for us all.
皮特·理查德是鎮上最孤獨的人，就在那天，珍·格雷斯打開了他小店的門。這間小店是祖父傳給他的，各種古玩雜亂地堆放在前麵小小的櫥窗裏：有內戰前人們帶的手鐲和紀念品盒，金戒指、銀盒子、翡翠和象牙製品、精美的小雕像等。在這個冬日的下午，一個小孩站在那兒，她的前額頂在櫥窗上，瞪大眼睛似乎在虔誠地尋找什麽特殊寶貝。最後，她站直了身子，滿意地笑了，走進店裏。