Sibling Assignment # 24 : A Room From Childhood

The sibling assignment this week was to reflect on a room from childhood that had special significance. You can find my other siblings’ assignments here and here.

We grew up in a house with one bathroom. Fortunately Dad showered at work during the week. With a family of five the bathroom was a busy place. If you wanted to take your time with a bath or anything else you were often interrupted by somebody knocking at the door. We also ran out of hot water on busy bathing nights.

The room I loved in childhood was the bathroom at my Grandma Woolum’s house. Grandma was a small woman and it seemed like the bathroom was made just for her. Because the room was small I think somebody shrunk the claw foot tub to fit. For many years there wasn’t even a sink. That tub also seemed like it was designed just for me. Grandma had an apartment upstairs that also had a bathroom. Mom told me recently that originally the little bathroom was probably a pantry.

During my grade school years nobody lived upstairs so when we came to visit that meant there were two bathrooms. Such a luxury! I could take a bath at Grandma’s for as long as I liked. Spending a week-end at at her house was an adventure anyway, but I always looked forward to Saturday night and my soak in the tub. Grandma used Cashmere Bouquet soap which now seems a bit strong, but back then it was a scent from heaven. She also had fancy bubble bath powder that she couldn’t use. Many things made Grandma break out. These items that had been given as gifts such as the bubble bath and pastel colored Avon scented soap were mine to use. I loved the warm, sudsy water, the mixes of fragrance, and the privacy. The bathroom was right off the kitchen, but by the time I took a bath in the evening everyone had moved to the living room. She always had soft, freshly laundered white towels waiting on the toilet seat to wrap up in after the bath and Jergen’s lotion since it was the only type her skin could handle. I loved the original cherry smell of that lotion as I rubbed it on my arms. Between the soaps, bubble bath, and lotion I must have carried quite a fragrance as I emerged from the bathroom. I remember feeling relaxed, clean, and refreshed. After a cup of hot chocolate with marshmallows I was ready to crawl into my favorite roll-away bed for a night of peaceful slumber. That bathroom was my own sanctuary before I knew I needed one. I would think, soak, sing, play with the bubbles, and enjoy every moment of bathing with nobody knocking on the door. Bathing at Grandma’s was pure bliss for this ten-year-old girl.