I made the world a better place with my pink sweater.
At least I have a feeling it is.
Just a tiny bit, but still.
Technically, the sweater – size S, 80 percent cotton and 20 percent polyester, print on the back and front – is really nothing special.
What makes it special is the message behind it, the message.
In a world in which it is not the thing but the meaningfulness of things that is becoming increasingly important, clothing is no exception to this logic.
And because you rarely find meaning in white T-shirts that you buy in a pack of three, this is about my sweater.
It's "dusty pink" - and for boys who are allowed to be sad
It comes from England, it's supposed to be "dusty pink", i.e. dusty pink, which only sounds rudimentarily as nice.
But the color is secondary, what is on the label is more important: "Boys Get Sad Too", boys get sad too.
The sweater comes from a label that has the same name as the slogan, but which is of course not just about spontaneous sadness, but about so much more than that: depression, anxiety disorders, self-harm.
In short: about mental illnesses, especially in men.
Because they are still finding it more difficult to admit mental illnesses, to have them diagnosed and to seek help.
At least heavier than women.
That can end fatally, for the men of course, but also for all their relatives.
The British label, which emerged in 2018 from a spontaneous idea, wants to change that: one by pointing out mental illnesses in men on absolutely every piece of clothing - from sweaters to jogging pants to socks.
And thus turns sweater wearers like me into walking mental health awareness ambassadors.
But also by giving ten percent of the label's proceeds to a campaign that wants to draw attention to the topic of mental health and has real ambassadors.
Of course, the idea of using clothing to draw attention to problems is not new.
And the approach whereby a label donates a fraction of its proceeds is about as innovative as the eighth super-fast delivery service in a major German city.
When it comes to the environment, there is already a lot going on in this direction.
With Mad Happy and the Happiness Project, Boys Get Sad Too even has two comparable competing labels on the American market.
But all of that doesn't stop me from feeling a little bit better wearing my pink sweater.
I'm not "sad" then, quite the opposite.