My favorite color – in defense of green
It wasn’t until we had moved to the dusty beige high desert of New Mexico that I realized how much I missed green. Growing up on the California coast, green was a given. Especially in spring, when the hillsides and fields, riotous with golden daisies and purple heather, settled on a broad blanket of green. Huge cypress with verdant wings protected the meandering olive manzanitas that marked the streams. The dusky green Pacific on a wintery, stormy dark day when the waves battered the beach. Our trips back to visit friends reminded us just how much green meant to us.
Even as the desert was devoid of so much plant life, it was also stingy with another kind of green – the kind you keep in your wallet. So after trying for more than 4 years to find a living we moved back home to the coast. Back to our house which we promptly painted green.
I guess I never really thought about green being my favorite color, but thinking back to my childhood, I can remember lots of green: the dark green sectional sofa, cars in metallic green and medium green. Green crayons, smelling slightly oily in all the special tints and pastels. The green trim around the windows, and the humongous green lawn in front of every house. Everyone in my family had green eyes of one type or another. And there was always the green dress my sister got when school started, when I got the red one: for me, that green was envy. It must be the comfort color of my childhood that I long for. My new sofa is green, and my laptop has a green cover. My eyes are greener when I wear my favorite green shirt. Even my toes are green.
Now I am wondering what this all means. I’m sure some expert has published psychological profiles of those who favor green over the dominant ruby red. Of course there are the dull green hospital walls, and the pale green interior of the IRS office that hold bad memories. So let’s say that my green needs to be lively. This must be a good thing. Maybe my love of green means that I love life, that I need to have space to grow intellectually, and that Christmas trees make me happy. But green in nature seems to be found just in minerals and plant life. Who ever heard of a green dog or cat? Does this mean that I feel more comfortable in nature, rather than around pink or brown or black people? But dress them up in green – that’s another story.
Even as the desert was devoid of so much plant life, it was also stingy with another kind of green – the kind you keep in your wallet. So after trying for more than 4 years to find a living we moved back home to the coast. Back to our house which we promptly painted green.
I guess I never really thought about green being my favorite color, but thinking back to my childhood, I can remember lots of green: the dark green sectional sofa, cars in metallic green and medium green. Green crayons, smelling slightly oily in all the special tints and pastels. The green trim around the windows, and the humongous green lawn in front of every house. Everyone in my family had green eyes of one type or another. And there was always the green dress my sister got when school started, when I got the red one: for me, that green was envy. It must be the comfort color of my childhood that I long for. My new sofa is green, and my laptop has a green cover. My eyes are greener when I wear my favorite green shirt. Even my toes are green.
Now I am wondering what this all means. I’m sure some expert has published psychological profiles of those who favor green over the dominant ruby red. Of course there are the dull green hospital walls, and the pale green interior of the IRS office that hold bad memories. So let’s say that my green needs to be lively. This must be a good thing. Maybe my love of green means that I love life, that I need to have space to grow intellectually, and that Christmas trees make me happy. But green in nature seems to be found just in minerals and plant life. Who ever heard of a green dog or cat? Does this mean that I feel more comfortable in nature, rather than around pink or brown or black people? But dress them up in green – that’s another story.
posted by Anne B Wright at 10:32 AM
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