The Sun, Moon and the Stars

At the start of my sophomore year of college, my mother gave me a gift of a celestial-themed blanket.  It was my go-to for the rest of college, over my legs while studying if chilly, snuggled up with when I felt homesick, and overall a pretty decoration for my dorm room.

Later on, the blanket accompanied me to New Hampshire when I first moved in with Hubby and two roommates that were on the same submarine.  (In fact, I was the only female and civilian, as the house next door was packed with "Nukes" as well.)    The blanket dressed up  the back of our communal couch, which was harvest gold and brown and ugly as sin.   Later on that year it even did double duty as our Christmas tree skirt.

That blanket joined us after the wedding in our first apartment (having made the promise that the only other roommates would be ones that I gave birth to, it was just us.)  And at this house, it's my go-to for chilly nights when Brian likes the window open and I like it closed, it's just the right thickness to toss over the comforter on the bed.  Sometimes I like it swathed in my lap as I work some rounds on my latest knitting project.

Lately however, I've had some competition over my favorite blanket.  Will's taken to bringing it to bed with him as his "light" blanket in case the fleece "Cars" one that my mother made him is too warm.  I found it draped over Sean the other night when I sneaked into their room close to midnight to peek in on them and even give them a quick peck on the cheek.

Something about seeing those boys nestled in that blanket....it gives me a rush of emotion that I'm not sure where it comes from.  It's just an ordinary blanket, nothing special.  It came out of a catalog or perhaps even a big-box store.  I've thought about it for a few days and here's the best way to describe it:  That blanket has been something of a comfort item to me over the years.  It's accompanied me to a lot of places and seen me through a lot of years.  I've spent time under it daydreaming, planning, laughing and crying.  So to see one of those boys turning it into a fort or snoozing comfortably, it gives them the same things that it's given me.  And while it's also given me a little comfort, it's in its own way, shown me my Sun, Moon, and Stars.