Purple PJ Pants

You know that one friend or one family member who is known for that specific something? Maybe it’s even you. Perhaps you’re known for always bringing the apple pie to every Thanksgiving dinner, or maybe you’re the go-to friend who divvies up each tab that’s racked up when you go out to eat. I’m sure you’re known for one thing or another, and now you just kind of assume that role and its responsibilities, whether you like it or not.

Me? I’m that one friend who holds on to clothing way longer than I should, and eleven years later, you can still find me rocking the same purple PJ pants I wore in eighth grade.

My friends and family know exactly which pants I’m talking about. If any of them are reading this right now, I know they’re rolling their eyes thinking about the mere sight of them. I can even hear them talking about how absurd it is that I still have them and still wear them.

I happen to be in the small percentage of people who don’t buy clothes assuming that they come with an expiration date, even if I should have parted ways with that specific sweatshirt or beach coverup eight years ago. I have practically no attachment to clothing, so it’s not that I’m a hoarder and save everything I ever buy. I hold onto clothing when it’s still functional and when it has sentimental value. Purple PJ pants are exactly those two things.

So, what’s the back story with purple PJ pants? Why in the world would anyone keep a pair of PJs for eleven years?

Let’s begin by backtracking to Christmas Eve 2010.

Like all good Christmas Eves start out, I began my day with a nice hot shower to prepare for my night of eating fish, broccoli casserole, and one too many slices of red velvet cake. While I was in the shower day-dreaming about my evening, I happened to get a bloody nose. This wasn’t just a, “I can stick a tissue up my nose and get on with it,” kind of bloody nose. This was a, “I need to get out of the shower and try to get this to stop bleeding,” kind of bloody nose.

Long, long story short, I ended up passing out from being so queasy by the sight of my own blood and woke up to my mother performing CPR on me. Did I stop breathing and need CPR? No but when you’re lying unconscious on the bathroom floor and you’re lips are slightly blue, your mom will assume you’re on the brink of death. Naturally, in her moments of sheer panic, she did the only thing she could think of and that was save my life in anyway she could.

After I came to, I ended up being rushed to the hospital and spending Christmas Eve with a herd of nurses who ran a bunch of tests to see what was wrong with me. I tried to explain that being terrified of blood was what was wrong with me, but just to be sure, they kept me confined to a hospital bed until all my tests came back normal.

Aside from ruining Christmas Eve, I was able to salvage some of my night after the doctors released me. Christmas Eve is at my grandmother’s house every year, but instead of strolling into the party with a hospital bracelet on my wrist and IV bandages on my arm, I spent the night with my mom back at my house. As a true Christmas lover, I texted my friends about the ordeal and told them how I missed out on one of my favorite nights of the year.

A few hours later, one of my best friends and her mom surprise visited me and delivered a plate of dinner and desserts. Along with the food, my friend dropped off her Christmas PJs and gifted them to me instead of taking them for herself. I remember thinking that even though I had a rather unfortunate day, I was a really fortunate friend. I knew it then and I know it even more now, but I have some of the most thoughtful and loving friends by my side. I cherished that gift, and clearly, I still do.

Since then, I’ve worn my purple PJ pants every winter (and spring, summer, and fall) since eighth grade. They are very worn, extremely faded, still too long for me, and definitely out of style (if PJs ever even come in and out of style?), but they have that home-cooked meal, fireplace-burning type of feeling still radiating off of them. They remind me to stay selfless and thoughtful, but more importantly, they remind me that in every unfavorable situation there is always a bright side.

So, maybe you're known for something a lot cooler--- I hope you are, to be honest. But, I've assumed the role of being the best purple PJ pants holder this side of the Mississippi, and with that title comes the responsibility of having the best friends a girl could ask for... which I must say, is the brightest side.