tickled pink
R: You know how purple is your favourite colour?
Me: Yup.
R: And you know I’ve been looking for a secondhand canoe for a long time?
Me: Sure.
R: Well I just found us a purple canoe!
Me: (me looking at the canoe tied to the top of the car) That’s not purple.
R: Yes, it is!
Me: Not purple.
R: It’s purple like your shirt.
Me: My shirt is grey. The canoe is pink. Petal pink.
R: I still think it’s purple.
Me: It's not purple.
For the most part, I’ve always been a serious person. I am drawn towards things that are efficient, practical and meaningful while leaning away from the frivolous and flighty. There was that one time I almost frolicked but that was completely by accident. Part of me thinks that pink is the favourite colour of those who frolic without reserve. After several years of doing intentional nervous system regulation work to deal with the stressors of the pandemic, politics, anti-racism work, the horrors of the residential school system and the climate change crisis, I’ve been curious about what I could do to discover a more lighthearted approach to life to develop some balance. The ideas I had were to expand my reading beyond my online timelines to include more poetry and fiction. To go for more walks that have no destination. To watch more comedies that make me laugh instead of solving mind puzzles while watching mostly dark detective shows.
Nowhere on my list of lighthearted ideas was “get a pink canoe”.
Yet, here I am. A purple-loving, pink canoe owner. Since getting the boat two days ago, we’ve been out on the water twice and both times someone has shared with us their appreciation for the pinkness of it. The fact that they verbalized it out loud worked in my favour since now R believes that the canoe might just be pink after all. I’ve also noticed smiles on the faces of others who have watched us carrying the boat to the water or those who have done a double take when we drive by with it on top of the car. And let's be serious, how serious can you be while paddling along in a pink canoe? Who knew that colour blindness could lead to such unexpected amusement? Where do you find lightheartedness when life gets heavy?