May Gray

They were the first pieces of furniture I ever purchased.

I was 20 years old, engaged, lost between daydreams of a May wedding and the practicalities of starting a new home with my man.

I got them for $50 bucks at a garage sale -- a couch and a loveseat, both covered in nubby gray fabric. They were classic '80s basement couches, with a double layer of cushions on the back and a foam so thick you could almost melt away in the folds.

But they didn't smell, and they weren't horribly stained, and other than the bed and desk my parents were graciously letting us take from my bedroom, we had no other furniture.

So I plunked down my $50 and somehow got them home.

A few months later, they sat tall and proud in our rented duplex, next to the upside-down cardboard boxes that served as end tables.

Gray never made me so happy.

I was inspired to write this post by the writing exercise posted at Adventures in Babywearing. Click here for the directions and more couch-themed essays.