CM and CMW and the Quilt

     Now it came to pass that Certain Man and Certain Man’s Wife have been married for nearly 33 years.  And in that time, there have been relatively few squabbles over small things like blankets and who got their fair share.  There has been peaceable agreement over such things as room temperature, how many blankets and even the firmness and size of the mattress and pillows. 
    Several years ago (nearly ten, to be exact) a Hispanic friend who worked in a local stitching factory gave CMW a large flowery bedspread that has been the covering of choice and that, coupled with a sheet in the summer and a very large fuzzy blanket in the winter, has been all that was needed for warmth most of these years.
     However, within the last year there have been several things that have marred the peace at the Church of the Inner Spring.  Mental Pause with its heat flashes and irritability and sleep disturbances has made some minor inroads into the established patterns. Aching joints and changing schedules and adult children have also made for some differences in sleep habits. And then something else came along that further upset the balance.  The QUILT.
     CMW is not a quilter.  In fact, in her cedar chest there resides a very old quilt top that was given to her by an old friend, Mary Belle Hostetler, for a wedding gift that has never been quilted.  Once upon a time, CM and CMW were given a beautiful friendship quilt by the church they were leaving when they moved from Ohio to Delaware, but it was loved and used into great disarray and finally put on the shelf.  Other than that, not one solitary homemade quilt has ever been in CMW’s possession. 
      The interest in quilts and the desirability of quilts has not been lost on CMW.  She was not consumed by a longing for one, but thought it might be nice to own just one.  So when she was visiting her friend, Bev, a few years ago, and Friend Bev’s Mother had numerous quilt tops that she was working on, it was arranged to purchase a very nice looking non-descript sort of quilt and Friend Bev’s Mother agreed to quilt it for CMW.  Nearly two years ago, this project was finished, and the quilt duly sent and it resided in the closet for about a year until CMW had the urge to put it on her bed one day, and it looked very nice there, indeed.  It actually was perfect in color and size for the summer months, and when winter finally came, the weather was so mild that an occasional blanket thrown over all was enough to keep CM and CMW in comfort.
       Then Certain Man took it upon himself to lose a few pounds.  This always is accompanied by a shift in body temperature for him.  He feels like he is freezing alot of the time.  So, CMW took it upon herself to find a velux blanket that was adequate to cover the bed, but did not stick out below the quilt.  This did not lend itself well to one of the parties wrapping it all around themselves in an attempt to keep warm, but usually it did not matter too much as the other party was usually affected by the aforementioned “mental pause” and had no interest in wrapping up in a thick velux blanket. 
      However, in the mornings, there was evidence of struggle with quilt and blanket on one side of the bed and sheet gathered morosely on the other.  When CMW made the bed in the morning, she pondered about whether two people with such disarray of blankets and sheets could have slept well.  She had a vague, disquieted feeling that maybe neither party was getting enough rest.
     Then CMW developed an abscess on a molar that she had been trying to get her dentist to do something about for several months.  No longer could it be a “wait and see” proposition.  This thing was hurting with a vengeance, causing much nocturnal pain and wakefulness, and making CMW tearful over many things.  And it came to pass that one of the things that was troubling her very much was that there were great snatchings going on over the blankets at night.  And it was being done under the great cover (excuse the pun) of sleep, and she was as guilty as the second party of being disruptive.  Certain Man would turn over in his sleep and hitch the quilt and blanket around his strong shoulder and it would conveniently leave Certain Man’s Wife and snuggle onto his back while she lay out in the cold, clutching the sheet.  Now if she had been sleeping in her usual deep way, she would never have even noticed, but most of the time, she was half way between sleep and misery and thinking that she was almost asleep when the covers would whoosh off of her that would only make her more miserable.  So she got to holding onto the edge of the blanket and quilt with a firm grasp and in her half-sleep, would hang on for dear life when the covers started to move and that would actually pull her over sideways when her bed partner would decide it was time to turn over.  Now CMW did not BLAME him, as it is no fun to turn over and have cold air blasting down your back, but these narrow blankets were obviously causing a problem between two usually agreeable bed partners.  It was making them tired and irritable and the tooth and medication and freezing man and blanket grabbing woman were all being aggravated beyond what was necessary.
     This morning, Certain Woman looked at her bleary image in the mirror and pondered the options.  Suddenly, it looked very simple.  Where were the big old fuzzy blanket and the big flowery bedspread?  Right there in the closet.  It was time for a change.  In a great burst of inspiration, she took the offending blanket and quilt off  and replaced it with the familiar generous coverings of last winter.  It looked so familiar that Certain Man, in from the chicken house and dressing for the office never even noticed.  Certain Man’s Wife looks forward to a good night’s rest and behold, peace hath returned to the Church of the Inner Spring.