MEMORIES/LIFE
Goose Feather Comforters
The laughter
When I was a kid, we had lots of holidays in Austria. They seem idyllic now. We stayed with family friends who had a house in Steiermark that looked just like the chalet on a jigsaw puzzle.
My sister and I shared a room there, and as soon as pleasantries were done we would rush upstairs to our room to throw ourselves into the huge feather quilts that were on our beds.
We would literally disappear as our weight displaced the feathers, and white cotton cover would billow up around us. These were old-fashioned, traditional bedcovers.
Because I was so young and not yet interested in bedding, I simply accepted that this was normal in the countryside of Austria.
They lay about 18 inches deep, except when leapt on, and then the billow would be about three feet around us, hiding us from sight. We would laugh with sheer delight.
We did many things in Austria on holiday. Swimming in mountain lakes, going up mountains in cable cars, and we went regularly to Vienna. What stands out right now is those feather beds.
Thank you Ravyne Hawke for such a happy reminder!
