There’s an old saying: ‘there’s no such thing as bad weather, only unsuitable clothing.’
Well, that’s partly true.
We can layer up warm against the cold, wind, rain – and sometimes the weather is still rough.
And we carry around layers of protection with us, protection we’ve been wearing for many years. We put these barriers and behaviours up to keep ourselves safe through hardship.
It was probably necessary at the time, even if was an inelegant solution. We often acted fearful; it seemed urgent. We just didn’t know any better.
But at least in summer we can take our hat and jacket off when it gets hot. What about those other, more personal, layers?
Here’s a question: these layers of protection, do they still serve us?
Is there a more elegant way of staying safe while still enjoying the weather, even as our own seasons change?
Do we still need the tough layers we put on in moments of personal winter, even in our summer moments?
Enjoy this invitation to explore how we keep ourselves safe, to layer up appropriately and intentionally, so we can manage our changing fortunes more elegantly.
What just happened? Autumn, Layers and the Wardrobe
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Potentially controversial opinion: I quite like it when autumn and winter sidle up.
Sure, there’s plenty to lament: the cold; soaking wet clothes at work; minimal sunlight.
And yet …
Here we get ‘haar’ – a cold sea fog that fills the city from the streets up. Often, it tops out around streetlight level. From up high, the streetlights sometimes poke their necks up, like swans with glowing beaks. From the streets below, looking up, pretty halos encircle them.
I like eating hot chips on an icy day,
and when the rain is so fine, it’s like a fresh, sobering mist.
Oh – and sometimes we get snow. On the rare occasion it happens, there’s a sound like crunching cardboard as I step on the fresh, crisp powder. It brings me so much joy.
The delightful Gill offered up some ideas for this week as it gets much colder here in the northern hemisphere: warm drinks, hot springs, curling into a favourite cosy blanket. They reminded me of things I love to do in the cold, and they’re possible because I layer up nice and warm.
It’s not a big step from there to finding things to look forward to when wearing appropriate protection. And, from there, to where we’ve wrapped up for protection over the years to weather storms, and never come back to revisit our choices or take off the protection when we’re done.
No specific or explicit techniques with the Wardrobe here, just an invitation and opportunity to get curious and explore what we’ve been carrying with us for protection over the years – and, if you like, hang up a few things or choose something more appropriate.
