Depression wears a pair of Wranglers

I once saw a post on a blog by a man with a picture of himself sitting on a fence, wearing a pair of Wrangler’s. He now wore premium, Japanese selvedge - the photograph was a throwback to his younger days. You could see a young, fit, good looking man in a western shirt in Wranglers, smiling. He might have been with one or two friends, I can’t remember.

The image contrasted with his comment. He hated Wrangler's, they reminded him of bad times, of his former troubles, and past sadness. I think the thread was discussing Wranglers and their history and quality. But his post was not just about the jeans, to him, they represented other things; maybe poverty, stories he’d rather forget, maybe friends he no longer spoke to if they parted ways because of shared unhappiness.

It’s interesting how objects make us feel a certain way - they hold meaning beyond just being simple things. The sadness that Wranglers represented to made jeans more than utilitarian - he was too poor to afford better jeans, yet he appeared happy.

The things we have next to us are bound up in a web of meaning. His Wranglers are not just clothing - they reveal part of the boy’s world to us, especially with the help of his telling his story.

He is pointing the way for us, as we look at the photograph it creates a mystery of an imagined story because of the inconsistency with his expression and demeanor in the picture, while we read his expressed emotions - if he’s smiling, why is he so unhappy?

I wish I could find the picture and the post, but it’s long gone now probably.

I was reminded of the photograph because it seems like unhappiness often accompanies youth. I think of my younger days when I was so smart, fit, and unhappy. I think of a picture of myself on my high school graduation day, smiling with my childhood friends. I'm reminded of how unhappy I used to be, and it makes me think of how I have already changed my life, and how else I should change my life.