Day 15: Declutter & Clearify

There’s something about a well-loved blanket. It’s possibly connected to having a baby blanket that made us feel safe and warm. My Nanny crocheted over 50 blankets for her grand- and great-grandchildren. I held my boys in these sacred cocoons with ancestral love woven into each stitch.

These blankets that I rediscovered in my linen closet have been with me since before I was married. I think my mom and aunt made them. There’s history in these blankets. They connect me to family and represent my childhood home. I’ll put them on my couches this winter.

The white, blue, and orange blanket was given to Nick while he was in the hospital. Generous volunteers crochet hundreds of blankets every year and donate them to pediatric cancer patients as well as other patients in our local hospital.

I remember when a volunteer pushed a cart of thick blankets into the room. Nick chose this blanket, and the colors brightened a plain room and his dire situation. He’d be curled up in bed, and that trusted blanket kept the chill out of his frail body. 

A few years ago, I never would have thought of giving it away. Now, when I see it, it reminds me of the goodness and love that people shared with us. People we didn’t know. Those who give because their hearts overflow with love. They know the secret to giving. The more you do it, the more healing occurs in the world.  

This blanket cocooned my son in love. I thank the person who selflessly stitched this gift. They’ll never know the impact it had. Now it will be paid forward to another, and I hope they love it as much as Nick did.

What’s your favorite blanket?

Do you crochet or knit?

What have you made for yourself or others?

Please share photos!