On a frigid New Year's Eve, a poorly clad little girl, having lost her slippers, wanders the streets selling matches.  Starving and freezing, she finds refuge in a doorway.  Desperate for warmth, she lights matches, each one conjuring vivid illusions: a warm stove, a delicious goose dinner, and a magnificent Christmas tree.  Finally, she sees her deceased grandmother, and in a blaze of light, they ascend to heaven together, escaping cold, hunger, and fear.  The next morning, the girl is found frozen to death, her rosy cheeks and smile hinting at the wondrous visions only she witnessed.  The passersby only see a child who tried to warm herself, unaware of the glorious New Year's she experienced with her grandmother.