“Can I buy you a new cap?”
“No thank you.”
“Can you afford a new cap?”
“Yes I can. Thank you.”
“Do you know people might judge you because of how your cap looks?”
“I like the worn look. It represents my well-lived life. Thank you for your
concern.”
“Do you know you look homeless in that hat?”
“Looks can be deceiving but I do have shelter. Thank you.”
“Do you just wear that hat because you have no hair? Be proud of yourself…”
“I’m actually very proud of how I’ve managed to become who I am. My lack of
hair doesn’t reduce my value. The history behind the hat is what actually
holds value but thank you.”
“Well really what’s with the trash hat?”
“My partner died 5 years ago and this was one of the last gifts he gave me. We
still haven’t had a funeral for him so I wear this hat each day as I grow through grief. When I look at this hat I see the widowed weathering I’ve endured. I wear it to remind myself that I do have the strength and I honor myself for what I have overcome. To you it may be just a sign of poverty but to me it represents self priority and an internal prosperity I can’t place a value on. I’ll lay it to rest when I’m ready.”
“Good grief you should have just said it in the first place. Now you made me feel bad!”
“If that’s the case, perhaps it best to first ask a man why he treasures something before you call it trash. You would have saved yourself the guilt. You would have gifted me the opportunity to tell you all about a wonderful man I once knew but, instead, you just wanted to put a cap on my grief…”
