My New Pajamas!
by Guest Contributor, Clayton Smythe
When I was a little boy of 8 or 9 years old, my mama returned home from a neighborhood ladies' AVON Christmas Party with a brochure which included a picture of a boy and his sister, looking at a book they had received for Christmas.
Never mind the book. When I saw what the boy was wearing, I told my mama, pointing to the photo, "I want pajamas like he's wearing."
She said: "those aren't pajamas. He's wearing long underwear like grandpa wears. They're called 'union suits.' You don't want those. You already have long underwear." Well, two piece thermals didn't count. I adamantly replied that I wanted ones like the boy in the ad was wearing.
Try as she might to ignore my constant refrain over the next couple weeks for wanting pajamas or long underwear or union suits or whatever they were called, she finally relented.
Under the tree Christmas morning was a package of spectacularly red "pajamas." After tearing open the package, I stripped off the pajamas I was wearing down to my white briefs right there in the living room and pulled on my first union suit. I loved it!
My grandparents were visiting us that holiday. Grandpa got the biggest kick out watching me pull on my new "pj's." Union suits were what he wore all of his life and still did, even on that special day! We were both in union suits that Christmas!
Like many of the readers of this great blog, I've worn union suits ever since. I don't ever remember wearing actual pajamas since that Christmas. Grandpa is gone now but I think of him now and again and our mutual wearing of long one-piece winter underwear.
Regards, Clay
Thanks, Clay, for your memory of a great Christmas Day when you got the present you wished for!
....Chris
