Oh, the colors!

[eimarra]

Sidewalk chalk drawing by my daughter

I am grateful for the ability to see. Mind you, it’s been years since I’ve seen clearly without glasses. I’m near-sighted, I have astigmatism, and the eye doctors is really strongly urging me toward bifocals. The fact that there are such things as corrective lenses, eye doctors, and insurance to pay for the lenses? Also a source of gratitude.

However, I can, and sometimes do (though less frequently of late) wander around the house without my glasses on. I can cook, read, work on the computer, and get through most of daily life just fine without the lenses. To watch TV or drive or go anywhere, though, I prefer sharp vision. (And, you know, the state insists on them if I drive.) So sharp isn’t so much a requirement for me (Raise your hand if you’ve ever gotten a new glasses prescription and complained, “But the world’s not supposed to look that sharp!”) as just being able to see.

My life revolves around things that rely on sight. Reading. Writing (so I can see that what I typed is what I thought I did). Knitting, quilting, crocheting — placement of the hook or needle makes a difference. Sketching. Gardening. Cooking (You do not want me to put cumin into the apple pie instead of cinnamon). I’m really grateful for all the things that I can see (yes, even the clutter).

Most especially, I am grateful for colors. I’m one of those kids who learned color names from labels on the 64-box of Crayola crayons. (Quick: When’s the last time you used periwinkle for something?) Of course, the labels they have now don’t match what I knew. I supplemented that knowledge with labels from my mom’s oil paints — which also had ocher and sienna, but added in shades like carnelian and ultramarine. Anyone who’s seen quilts I’ve worked on knows I tend toward bright colors, especially primaries. When I’m in a funk, sometimes I’ll just grab pastels or markers and do random swirls and arcs and patterns (which might be why my daughter’s sidewalk chalk art appealed to me so much; she also loves colors).

If I lost my colors tomorrow, I could still do so much of what I already do (although quilting, crocheting, and knitting would be more iffy, unless I limited myself to monochromatic projects), but my life wouldn’t be the same. Thus, I am grateful for all the colors in my life.

What are you grateful for today?

Originally published at Erin M. Hartshorn. You can comment here or there.