Twenty Seven Jumpers

I cleaned out my wardrobe this week. I do not recommend this activity if you have any attachment to your self-image as a rational, sensible adult. I found twenty-seven jumpers.

Twenty. Seven.

I live on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland. They call it the Sunshine Coast, which is optimistic. This year alone we have had so much rain that the name feels like a personal joke. The thing about Sunshine Coast rain though is that it doesn’t come with cold. It comes with humidity. It is hot and wet, and the air itself feels like it’s wearing a jumper. Did I mention I own twenty-seven of them?

They didn’t arrive all at once. That’s the thing about a jumper problem — it’s not a problem, it’s a collection, and collections accumulate slowly and with excellent justification at the time. This one was soft. That one was the most perfect shade of grey. This one was on sale and honestly it would have been rude not to. They crept in one at a time over many years and made themselves at home and I let them because have you ever put on a really good jumper? The weight of it. The softness. The feeling of being gently wrapped up in something warm when the world is a bit much. A good jumper is a hug you can wear, and I will not apologise for that.

The cold does come to the Sunshine Coast. Occasionally. For about three weeks in July. I am ready for those three weeks. I’m more than ready. I could outfit a small village.

I did get rid of a couple. Two, maybe three. The rest are back in the wardrobe, waiting for July like hopeful little woollen optimists. I stood there looking at all of them and instead of feeling shame I felt something closer to joy. They’re mine. I love them. They make me happy in a way that is completely disproportionate to what they are, which is just fabric, but here we are.

There are worse things to collect. And on the days when the world is loud and life is a lot — a soft jumper and a quiet couch is genuinely enough.

Twenty-seven is probably enough though. Probably.

Tell me your version of the jumpers — the thing you have too many of and absolutely do not regret. 🕯️