At forty, Franz Kafka (1883-1924) who had no children, was walking
through the park in Berlin when he met a girl who was crying because she
had lost her favourite doll. She and Kafka searched for the doll
unsuccessfully. Kafka told her to meet him there the next day and they
would come back to look for her.
The next day, when they had not yet found the doll, Kafka gave the girl a
letter 'written' by the doll saying, "Please don't cry. I took a trip
to see the world. I will write to you about my adventures."
Thus began a story which continued until the end of Kafka's life. During
their meetings, Kafka read the letters of the doll carefully written
with adventures and conversations that the girl found adorable.
Finally, Kafka brought back the doll (he bought one) that had returned
to Berlin. "It doesn't look like my doll at all," said the girl. Kafka
handed her another letter in which the doll wrote: "My travels have
changed me." The little girl hugged the new doll and took her home,
happy. A year later Kafka died.
Many years later, the now-adult girl found a letter inside the doll. In
the tiny letter, signed by Kafka, it said, "Everything you love will
probably be lost, but in the end, love will return in another way."
~ Originally posted by Oriah from her friend: Linda Mulhall. ~
