Song of the Day: Coat of Many Colors

I pulled out a CD of Eva Cassidy's I'd not listened to in a while, and here was the first track, "Coat of Many Colors" by Dolly Parton.  I remember that song helping to straighten out some bad-attitude days back when I was a kid.  Mother made a lot of our clothes and some were great successes that I loved until they wore out, and others I didn't like at all, or thought they didn't fit right, or worried that the kids at school would be able to tell it was home-made.  So I identify with this song, and remember with regret the times I gave my Mom a hard time about wearing something she had made me.  What a gift that is, when you really think about it - to have someone spend their time and energy on making a garment for you. 

I remember in fifth grade she made a pink plaid culotte jumper for picture day, but didn't have time to finish the buttons before I needed it, so we straight-pinned me into it.  The problem was it had to come down when I used the bathroom, so I had to know how to pin it back.  No problem, I knew how to use straight-pins, and they were easier than getting a safety pin angled just the right way so it wouldn't show.  I  loved that outfit and wore that jumper with pins on the shoulders for quite a while, and I still remember the feel of those pins pricking me on my soft skin.

Another favorite was a wrap-around jacket she made for me when I went to college, corduroy on one side, and burgundy plaid wool on the other side, reversible.  It was a really cool design and I got a lot of compliments on it.  Herb used to point it out to people and tell how my Mom made it for me.  I hope I'll find that sewing pattern in her stash someday.

Another was a wrap-around skirt that she made of a beige and floral fabric and I actually found a store-bought blouse to match.  I wore that to Grandma and Grandpa Swain's wedding anniversary, and a lot around campus at Hiram.  Hope I find that sewing pattern, too.

Another memory is not so pleasant.  I gave a sweater away that she had knit for me.  It was too big and never fit me.  A girlfriend on my floor of the dorm loved it, though, and asked to borrow it once.  After I saw how much better it looked on her than me I told her she could keep it.  Later, when Mom asked what became of it and I told her, she was appalled, rightly, to think I'd given it away.

Another good memory is my prom dress.  She made it from a Laura Ashley pattern, white with white lace inset above the tiered ruffle on the skirt, with pale blue satin ribbon above the ruffle, on the bodice and continuing on as the strap.  It fit to a T and was beautiful.  I still have that dress, although I will probably never fit into it again.  It would be fun to see a grand-daughter try it on someday and laugh.  This was one of the examples where Mom was as naive as I was.  It was double-lined, so could be worn bra-less, and laced up the front with the satin ribbon from the navel up.  Sounds risque now, and might have been, a little, but it was laced tight and the ribbon covered me pretty well. 

Still...I'm surprised at what she made me that I wore then.  She made me midriff tops that tied in front at the bottom of the sternum with no other closure up the front than that low tie - and I wore those all summer until I was 17, probably!  They fit very well, too, and didn't sag or let anything show that shouldn' have.  All I cared was that they were cool and comfortable.  More recently, I asked her once why she let me dress like that at that age and she said, "Honey, I was as naive as you were.  I didn't know any better than you, then, how men might think when they see something like that."   She was sheltered by my Dad, had married very young, and when I was 17 she was still only 37, but running our household like the expert she was.

So here, for your thinking pleasure, is the song that brought back so many memories.

Coat of Many Colors, by Dolly Parton

Back through the years

I go wonderin' once again
Back to the seasons of my youth
I recall a box of rags that someone gave us
And how my momma put the rags to use
There were rags of many colors
Every piece was small
And I didn't have a coat
And it was way down in the fall
Momma sewed the rags together
Sewin' every piece with love
She made my coat of many colors
That I was so proud of
As she sewed, she told a story
From the bible, she had read
About a coat of many colors
Joseph wore and then she said
Perhaps this coat will bring you
Good luck and happiness
And I just couldn't wait to wear it
And Momma blessed it with a kiss

Chorus:

My coat of many colors
That my Momma made for me
Made only from rags
But I wore it so proudly
Although we had no money
I was rich as I could be
In my coat of many colors
My Momma made for me

So with patches on my britches
Holes in both my shoes
In my coat of many colors
I hurried off to school
Just to find the others laughing
And making fun of me
In my coat of many colors
My Momma made for me

And Oh I couldn't understand it
For I felt I was rich
And I told them of the love
My Momma sewed in every stitch
And I told em all the story
Momma told me while she sewed
And how my coat of many colors
Was worth more than all their clothes
But they didn't understand it
And I tried to make them see
That one is only poor
Only if they choose to be
Now I know we had no money
But I was rich as I could be
In my coat of many colors
My Momma made for me
Made just for me