December 19,2009

My husband tried to help me make our bed this morning. It is a rare occasion when we rise together. Usually I make the bed as I am the last to get up. On weekends if I should arise first he leaves it unmade. I remember my father and mother making their bed. It was one of the few chores they performed well together. Since there were no fitted bottom sheets it was much more of an undertaking then it is now. The bottom sheet often had to be straightened and re -tucked under the mattress corners. Then there were several woolen blankets and a large bedspread that had to be positioned just so before it could be smoothed and tucked and tweaked into place. With 2 people, one on each side of the bed, the job went much quicker. One bed maker spent a lot of time walking around the bed to adjust the overhangs. As my husband tried to help with our much simpler bed covers I realized it was test of a couple's relationship.
Our bed is much simpler to make. The bottom sheet is fitted. It gets wrinkled in the center. I like to smooth it out with a few brisk swipes of my hand. Four pillows that need to be fluffed and plumped, a top sheet that needs to be positioned evenly on both sides and then set top to bottom so there is enough to fold over the fluffy quilt that goes on top. Here is where my husband and I run into trouble. He sort of gets the pillow fluffing and positioning. But as I lift and furl the top sheet to layer it over the mattress he starts trying to help. He puts it on lopsided , not square to the mattress side. He puts too much at the bottom end. He puts it on upside down with the wide hem at the bottom. I tweak and smooth on my side and his side is wrinkled and lumpy and I give him the look. He doesn't respond. It's his side of the bed. Should I ignore it? We have been married for 23 years, my husband and I, but we still don't know how to make a bed together.