An open letter to the clothes in the back of my closet…

Dear old friend,

I know, it’s been a long time. I’ve lost track of the days and months since I last saw you. I can picture you now, just withering away like a picked rose that was once so beautiful. There was a time when I used to admire you for that, for your beauty and your uniqueness; a time when I thought nothing better would ever come along, or that nothing better COULD ever come along. But, sadly, I now know that I was mistaken. I’m not sure exactly when, but sometime between then and now things between us started to change. We used to be inseparable, just like a shadow to a body; wherever there was you, there was me. And maybe it happened gradually, just slow enough not to notice, we started to drift apart. I slowly started to replace you with a new sweater here, or a new cardigan there, without even realizing it. Then, all at once, it hit me! While I was spending my days with you, I was blind to all the changes happening around me. Did you know you can mix patterns? You can! You can wear herringbone with plaid, stripes with polka dots, and even leopard with gingham! It’s incredible! Did you know that you can have more than one accent color? Yes, you can! You can wear navy with pink, turquoise, and even orange! It’s fantastic! There’s a whole new world of fashion and trends, I can’t believe what I was missing out on… vests made of fur, and scarves made of blankets! It’s magnificent! Everyday I continue to learn something new, and everyday I continue to forget more about you.

I can picture you now, all faded and gray, just wasting away while I am out exploring this modern, cutting-edge new world. I’m sorry. I know what you must think… that I have betrayed you and will someday forget you all together. Maybe you think it’s time that I move on, that I should let you go and be with someone who will appreciate and cherish you like I used to. I have thought about it too. I’ve considered letting you be free and out of the cage you’re trapped in, onto bigger and better things. But, just as I am about to do it, I start to remember. I remember the good times we had, all of the laughs and smiles. I suddenly remember all of the memories we share. Then I start to think about how much I’ll miss you if you’re gone. I start questioning whether I’m doing the right thing or not, and that’s when I realize that I still love you!

Maybe it’s cruel that I keep you around, and maybe someday I will have the strength to let you go. But, for now, I hold on. You’ll continue sitting in the back of my closet fading and waiting, while I continue experimenting with new styles and trends. It won’t last long though, remember when you were my newest trend? They go just as easily as they come, some for months and some for years. So don’t worry, don’t fret, maybe one day months or years from now, we’ll be reunited as your time comes back around and we can once again walk the streets together, just like in the old days.