My big sister is leaving for college next week. And I’m happy for her… I really am. But at the same time, it just feels weird. Like, how is she just going to not be here every day?
We’ve basically done everything together. Fighting over stupid stuff like who gets the better side of the bed. Laughing at random things that don’t even make sense to anyone else. Sharing food, then pretending we didn’t steal from each other. Now she’s packing her bags and leaving for college. New city. New life. New everything. And I’m just standing here like… okay, what do I do with all this space now?
So I wanted to give her something before she goes. Not something big or dramatic. Just something that feels like us. I found this XO blanket online. Soft, simple, kind of comforting-looking. And I just knew it felt right.
I guess I started noticing how many people talk about a college blanket as something you take when life is changing. Something that makes a new place feel a little less scary. I asked them to put something on it. Not some long emotional message or anything. Just her name, Bossy Sissy. I call her that sometimes when she’s being annoying… or when I’m being nice without saying it directly.
I don’t know why, but I felt kind of emotional while ordering it. Like it suddenly made everything real. That she’s actually leaving. That things are actually changing. And I remember thinking how these days, people keep looking for custom college blankets like they’re not just gifts, but tiny pieces of home you can carry with you.
Before she slept, I gave her the blanket. I just handed it to her like, “Here. Take this.” She looked confused first. Like, what is this? Then she opened it. And saw her name on it. She immediately pulled the XO Blanket around her shoulders, as if she needed something familiar to hold onto before everything began to change.
Now she’s leaving next week, and I keep pretending I’m okay. But I know it’s going to feel different. No more yelling across rooms. No more random fights. No more her stealing my stuff and acting innocent.
Still, I think she’ll take that blanket with her, and it’ll just sit there quietly with her. Like a piece of home she didn’t have to leave behind.
