What does it mean to inherit a hat? Not just the fabric or brim, but the memory and identity sewn into it. In this week’s episode of the TOP Podcast, I explore the hat we inherit—the objects, values, and burdens passed down through generations.

A hat can identify us, protect us, and connect us to a story larger than ourselves. I see it every time I glance at my grandfather’s old paperboy cap. It’s not just cloth—it’s a reminder of the man he was.

Literature is full of these inheritances: Gogol’s The Overcoat, where a coat gives dignity; Huck Finn’s straw hat, a symbol of freedom; Dickens’ Ghost of Christmas Present crowned with holly, a symbol of generosity. History, too, has its hats—Napoleon’s bicorne, Lincoln’s stovepipe, the tricorne of the Revolution. Each tells a story beyond the person who wore it.

In my upcoming novel Bloodlines, a hat travels across generations, becoming a bridge between grandfather and grandson, hardship and hope. Sometimes what we inherit fits well. Sometimes it’s heavy. Sometimes it’s what we push away. But we all wear something handed down to us.

So let me ask: what hat have you inherited? Maybe it’s an object, maybe it’s a value, maybe it’s a burden. The real question is—how will you choose to wear it?