As I was unpacking boxes from our recent rightsizing effort, I came across a towel set I used as packing material. Slightly frayed around the edges, I set them aside to go into the rag pile. Then I remembered where they came from.
We lived in northern Los Angeles County just after we married. We rented for a few months, but then bought a desert bungalow fixer-upper. Initially, we did a general cleanup, including fresh paint, but carpets, as awful as they were, had to wait. This included the purple carpet in the main bath. Ugh.
The SoCal Connection
The years we lived in California provided an opportunity to connect with family on both sides. On my side, my Great Aunt Eunice Miller Edwards helped us adjust to West Coast living even before our wedding. She was the second youngest of the Miller girls – Aunt Buleah was the eldest.
On one of my visits to see my soon-to-be husband, she helped me make my wedding dress and veil. I was on a tight wedding budget and timeline, and THE dress was an issue. Aunt Eunice was unflappable. She took me shopping for material and lace trim. She whipped out her sewing machine, and by the time I left, I had my dress and veil done.
After we married, I would visit her often. On one of those visits after moving into house house with the purple carpet, we went shopping. I do not recall if it was for something in particular, but we ended up at Sears, where I spotted these pretty stained glass pattern towels. The price was dear. I mentioned that these would go well in our bathroom, so I picked out two full-size and two hand towels. That’s all my budget would allow.
Aunt Euince would have none of it. “You need more than that! Let me get these as a housewarming gift.” She proceeded to get two large bath towels, a bath mat, wash cloths, hand towels, and regular-size bath towels. I was overwhelmed. I had never had such an overflowing, fluffy, matching towel set in my life! Such a precious gift.
Towels Get Another Life
So, as I decided to mend the towel edges and turn the set into “beach” towels, I smiled about three memories:
- The day my Aunt Eunice indulged me in my first complete set of towels
- The way that simple gift made my first bathroom feel “right”
- The early days of our marriage, which forty-seven years later continue to be an adventure
A story from a set of towels? More than that, fond memories of a dear, generous aunt and the early days of love. Objects are powerful holders of story. What will you write?