bowls。 Often at family gatherings or when we would all sit down for a Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner； my mother would say something about the missing china and how she wished it had survived the trip。 。 想看書來
祖母的瓷器（2）
When my mother died in 1983； I inherited Grandmother’s china。 I； too； used the set on many special occasions； and I； too； wondered what had happened to the missing box。
I love to prowl antique shops and flea markets； hunting for treasures。 It’s great fun to walk up and down the aisles early in the morning； watching as the vendors spread their wares on the ground。
I hadn’t been to a flea market in over a year when； one Sunday in 1993； I got the itch to go。 So I crawled out of bed at 5 ； and after a couple of hours I was thinking about leaving。 I rounded the last corner and took a few steps down the row when I noticed some china strewn on the macadam。 I saw that it was hand…painted china。。。 with forget…me…nots！ I raced over to look at it more closely and gingerly picked up a cup and saucer。。。 forget…me…nots！ Exactly like Grandmother’s china； with the same delicate strokes and the same thin gold bands around the rims。 I looked at the rest of the items—there were the cups！ The saucers！ The bowls！ It was Grandmother’s china！
The dealer had noticed my excitement； and when she came over I told her the story of the missing box。 She said the china had e from an estate sale in Pasadena—the next town over from Arcadia； where we had lived when I was a child。 When she was going through the contents of the estate； she had found an old unopened carton stored in the garden shed； and the china was in it。 She queshoned the heirs about the china and they said that they knew nothing about it； that the box had been in the shed “forever。”