13 Shades of Gray

A couple of years ago, my very artistic, creative friend Sara Nordling (well, I guess she's one of many friends of mine who are creative and artistic--sheesh, how lucky am I?)...anyway, Sara mentioned to me that there are 13 shades of gray on the official color wheel. When she said that, it was one of those moments when you find poetry. "Found poetry" is, basically, just copying whatever you see. (And "found poetry" sounds so much better than cheating or stealing, doesn't it?) Anyway, it was in that moment that I realized "13 shades of gray" could be an intriguing title to a book, or, as my husband suggested to me over lunch today, it could also be the title to a poem. So, here goes:

13 Shades of Gray

The color wheel spins
shades of reds and blues,
yellows and purples.
in whirling carnivals
of color.

But what of the grays?
the charcoal,
ecru,
ashy,
tawny,
dusty
shades of gray?

Those blurry lines
that zigzag
across my life
in smudges
and smears?

The whys
and wherefores,
unanswered questions
unstated dreams
and unfinished sentences
that linger in smoky clouds around me?

Within the kaleidescope of
canary yellow
crimson red
lilac
chartreuse
and neon pink,
I stand,
as 13 shades
color me
gray.