Friday, May 14, 2010

A Simple Solution

It was a cold and rainy day. Our apartment building has shut off the heat because of the mild spring and with a return to Canadian norm the cold has seeped through the walls and into our bones. It's not at the point where we are seeing our breath when we speak, but it's close.

The nice thing is that we have a house full of throws, all sorts of them. I love blankets. I think they are the most wondrous of creations. They are woven for the sheer purpose of hunkering down under and into. Both of us were buried under piles of soft, warm, binkies.

It's amazing the sense of security that comes with a blanket. It like a non-pharmaceutical version of some powerful drug that gives a sense of well being. There are so many problems that can be solved, or at least avoided, under a lovely soft throw.

Today when snuggled under my two favourites, a blue one that's very soft and a wine one that's very warm. I put the blue against me and the wine over it. As a result I get a very soft warm. Lovely.

I'm figuring that every single person who turns 16 should be given a couple of blankets with the instructions:

In crisis:

1) Curl up.

2) Throw blanket over.

3) Take a nap.

I know I'm being naive but I figure this just might be an end to many social ills. And by the way, all those people wheeling about in wheelchairs with blanket on their laps ... they've got a secret weapon against the harshness of the world. That's why they are usually smiling.

7 comments:

eiramyllek73 said...

When I was little, and feeling sad or unwell, my grandmother would wrap me up in her "magic quilt" that my great-grandmother had made. I truly believed (and still believe) that this quilt had special powers as I always felt safe and secure under it's snuggly warmth. My grandmother is 81 now, and my young children have the priviledge of spening lots of time with her as well as my 89 year old grandfather. Great-grandparents are a rare gift indeed these days. The magic quilt is also a part of their lives too. Everytime they vist Nan, they like to cuddle up with her in her bed wrapped in the quilt and watch their favorite shows with her. It's a wonderful sight to see. :)

Kristin said...

And, the very best blankets ate the ones that were made for you with love and prayers stitched right into them.

All three of my children have quilts that were made especially for them.

miss kitten said...

i love blankies, too. there's a blue fleece one in the car, another on the couch, a leopard print one on the bed (king sized bed, the throw makes up the difference in the "too warm" and "too cold" game that we would play otherwise.

and then there's the hideous yellow one that i cant throw away because they sent that one with Fallcon when he went from the nursing home to the hospital. they let me keep it. i didnt get to keep *him* and there arent enough blankies in the universe to make up for that.

i need a nap. :)

Susan said...

Crashing on the couch under a knitted blanket - yup, that's great therapy!

Anonymous said...

Dave:

I'm awake...csan't sleep, reading you very early today and... guess what.. .I am covered with my blue fleece blanket with another around my shoulders. My only extra comfort is my little poodle Betsie, ever faithful, on my lap. It reaslly doesn't get much better than this (oh, except for sleeping, that would be good).

Gina

Courtney said...

I love blankets too. I always thought I was wierd for collecting so many blankets. Glad I am not alone.

Anonymous said...

My favorite blanket is one that I got 30 years ago. It's really a sleeping bag but as I am allergic to sleeping outside, on the ground, or near bugs it has never been used as such. The underside is a worn red fleece and the outside are pictures and sayings from the American TV show "Welcome Back Kotter". That's right, I sleep under the words "Up your nose with a rubber hose". Sad...Strange....but true.