At the bakery on Saturday morning, thirtysomethings in quartz anoraks, sealy caps, and fancy flannel pajama bottoms arrived to pick up their chocolatines. Not jogging: In pyjamas! I tell myself it’s Saturday when I get out of bed.
Thursday afternoon in Provigo, I see the owner of the pajama set in the city coat. In the same week, I learned that students of a secondary school were doing the same, much to the chagrin of the school authorities. Since then, I’ve been seeing tired pajamas everywhere. Checkered, unicorn, small animals. Soon Christmas will appear!
So pajama bottoms were normalized in public places, which became a norm in 2022. This nightwear finds its success in daylight, soft and proud. The point is understood: after two years of pandemics and confinements, public pajamas are neither more nor less than a sequel. Twenty four months Nestingof enlarges shapeless jogging and Teams Softly, it gives folds. We embrace the most comfortable clothes, we lean into silk sectionals, our feet surrender to Crocs and UGGs, our homes become havens; We deliver food, parcels, medicine and jobs there through platforms.
Well settled into our interiors, bodies curled up in soft cotton, engrossed in a Netflix series, our brains so welcomed the softness of the surroundings that they slowly began to think.
Philanthropy was the tagline. We are now emerging, a little more dazed and scarred than expected. Flat soles and pajama bottoms are the only symptoms visible to the naked eye.
It must be said that this physical – and intellectual – approach fell on favorable ground. We are tolerant and kind. Quebec is generally a consensus country. The angles of our social relationships are rounded. We speak a less specialized French than France. We prefer accommodation to confrontation. Our welcoming social safety net cushions the harsh blows of fate. Politically, we re-elected the radical centrist party CAQ.
The outside world is increasingly hostile: the war in Ukraine, global warming causing anxiety, and Covid-19 still lurking. Even with us, social cleavages widen, camps with sharp positions oppose each other on the left and right, scrutinize each other and cancel each other out.
Times are uncertain. The most common posture consists of crouching and curling up at the bottom of a cozy den; If you venture into the threatening outside world, arm yourself with your soft shell: your pajama bottoms…
Softness is our ultimate refuge and we line our walls with wadding. Knitting has never been more popular for a long time. Cooking cookbooks and tableware. We celebrate Christmas in warm settings, go to concerts by candlelight, and even our chic clothes are loose and loose.
Some are campaigning for the withdrawal of structured clothing, suits and tailoring. They argue that a garment they own forces clear thinking. There is nothing wrong with that. The dress holds the body, the high heel is an attack, the steel cap establishes a balance of power. Body-hugging clothing also has thought. Look at the French; Their clothes and their snapping sentences…we too will at some point emerge from our scumbags and face the hostile world with straight shoulders and confident steps in beautiful clothes. Vivid patterns, dry and crunchy fabrics, and biting words, social debates ensue. But at this time we are a little more morally depressed, a little softer than our natural state. We were scared for ourselves and our loved ones. We are still fierce and fearful. One day we’ll get out of our pajamas, but not yet.
When we’re ready to melt, I hope we’re trading soft and soft. Because that’s who we are, Quebecers, deep inside. Our gentleness is a precious quality, a quiet strength. We think broad and comprehensive. Shapeless pajamas will pass, but joggers and soft knits will. Very good. Because gentleness is renunciation, gentleness is welcoming. Being flexible is our strength.
