On patina

I love patina. The signs of wear on your things. That sign that your stuf it’s not just stuff. It’s stuff that’s been with you, and has been shaped after the ways you use it. It’s the visible story of use and time—scuffs, scratches, and fading that show something has been part of your life. I love these marks.

You’ve walked on your shoes. You’ve stored stuff on your backpack, and you’ve paid meals with your wallet. You’ve been covered on the rain by your jacket

But I’m not saying our things define us. Your value isn’t measured by the objects you own or how worn they are. In the end, they’re just things. Our self-worth and identity go deeper.

But it’s not that, it’s about all the memories you get when looking at something that has true patina. That happens to me whenever I look at my Peak Design bracket. Looking at all the scratches that have appeared because I didn’t get a perfect insertion immediately brings to my awareness how many pictures I’ve taken in my life.

These marks aren’t flaws—they’re reminders of experiences and growth.

Sometimes, I even feel “pre-nostalgic”—imagining someone else, in the future, holding this object and sensing its connection to me. Out of thousands of identical wallets, none will age the same way. Patina makes each item unique, a kind of accidental signature of a life lived.

I think that speaks to me about the importance of durability and repairability. There’s no room for patina when usage renders your things unusable. Fuck anything that is easier to replace than to repair.

This makes me wonder: is it the same with relationships? Repairing a relationship, instead of replacing it, adds depth and history—its own kind of patina. But unlike objects, it’s much harder to know when a relationship can be fixed, or when it’s time to let go.

Repairing a relationship isn’t just about the bond itself. It’s about the people involved, too. We shape our relationships, but they shape us back. Sometimes, repairing the connection means repairing ourselves—and that’s never simple or easy. Sometimes it just won’t happen.