Pajamas

Alone in a silent house, after I tucked the kids to bed and gave Bamboo his treat to retire to his dog house, I decided to rummage through the space bags I kept under the bed. I share closet space with hubby. So to keep him from complaining I have too much clothes and make me feel guilty for bringing home yet another top, I store off-season clothing in space bags, suck the air out of them and voila! they're flat as a board and stowed away under the bed.

Anyway, in one of the bags, I found a pair of pajamas that Mama bought for me when I gave birth for the first time 13 years ago. It was a matching pink button- down shirt and pajama that had little flowers all over.  I wore the pair while in the hospital and every other time as soon as it left the clothesline after a day of drying in the sun. Even in the summer heat of March 1995, I had to keep warm and covered. I did not dare ask what happens if I didn't. I think stubborn new moms who refused to cover up went crazy or something if a breeze as much as touched any part of their waist down.

I brought that pair with me from the Philippines. Both the top and the pants are now so thin that you can almost see through the fabric from years of wash and wear. I only wear them in the summer now because they're so flimsy they don't provide much warmth. Each time, hubby and kids will tease me to throw them away They said I can't even donate them to the Salvation Army. But how can I part with them? They were the last piece of clothing that Mama gave me before I became a mom myself. They give me a sense of who I was and still, my Mama's daughter.

So this summer, the infamous pajamas will make an appearance once again. Call before you show up at my house. I wouldn't want to be caught wearing them and embarrass me and you.