Monkey Blanket

Friday night, as you were winding down for bedtime, it became apparent that we had a problem on our hands. No Blankie-Bear. Uh-oh. You pleaded with me to produce Blankie-Bear but unfortunately, I didn't have him. I knew this could be trouble.

Then I got an idea -- I grabbed my blanket from when I was a little boy, my Monkey Blanket. This blanket was made by my Grandma Brinkman for me and is older than I am, so, needless to say, it is well-worn -- to the point where the monkeys long ago faded away.

I explained to you, "Adessa, this is my Monkey Blanket. When I was your age, this was my blankie. I took it with me everywhere and it was very special to me." Which was true -- I was inseparable from my Monkey Blanket from the age of two until five. Even as I got into grade school, I'd sleep with it and keep it near me in the house. I wasn't sure if you'd approve of Monkey Blanket as an adequate substitute for Blankie-Bear, but you know what? I was thrilled to watch you cuddle up with it and promptly fall asleep.


By the next day, you were actually saying "Where's my Monkey Blanket?" instead of "Where's Blankie-Bear?" You took to it right away -- and I was very surprised by this. All weekend long, Monkey Blanket did a fine job of standing in for Blankie-Bear. Yeah, I'm very proud of Monkey Blanket today. I kept it all this time, not quite knowing why... and you gave me a great reason to do so.

Daddy