Blue

- why are we attracted to certain colours?

Written 13-14 December 2008 - (108 lines)

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Colours there are many of
I must have seen them all
Most I like but one I love
Whenever my eyes fall -

On that a special chemistry
Is triggered once again
God knows how but instantly
Somewhere in my brain

In the market or the shops
With many things to do
My wandering gaze always stops
The moment it meets - BLUE

For blue seems to call out to me
No other colour does
It really is a mystery
But I do not mind because -

No matter how many times a day
Whenever I see blue
It cheers me up in a certain way
Believe me, it is true

There are many kinds of blue
In lots of different shades
Seen in sunlight every hue
Grows more intense or fades

Some saturated like the sea
When free of waves and foam
Or when the sky is cloud-free
And like an endless dome

Some are weak and thin and pale
Like the mountain air
When a fast approaching gale
Warns the climber: beware!

And sure enough, before long
In hail and snow and sleet
The gusts will be so fierce and strong
To lift him off his feet!

Some iridescent as often seen
On butterflies, beetles and birds
The beauty of that amazing sheen
Is too much to put into words

Blue like the feet of God
On Mount Sinai, when
He spoke with Moses, gave the nod
And the tablets with the Ten

Simple answers appeal to me
Might this be a clue:
Is blue the first colour I see
Because my eyes are blue?

Surely there must be more to it?
Yet I wonder, deep down
Would blue still be my favourite
If my eyes were brown?

What are colours anyway
Do we really know?
Each one seems a tiny ray
Off the rainbow -

Electromagnetic energy
Dancing in space
Captured automatically
Passing my face -

Absorbed by my eager eye
Along the optic nerve
Silent streams of data fly
The brain waiting to serve -

Analysed without delay
Results ready to view
That wavelength will any day
Be translated into blue!

Is it magic or is it real?
The nature of light is such
That colours we can see and feel
Do not respond to touch

It must be strange and very sad
To be colour blind
Whilst other pleasures may be had
You would probably find -

Shades of red, yellow and green
In confusing overlay
No vibrant colours ever seen
To brighten up your way -

Except, to give you confidence
Yes, you guessed it - blue!
Surely no coincidence
That it comes shining through -

When all the other colours fail
To register as they should
Like a ray of hope in a desolate jail
Blue is truly good

So count your blessings every day
And give thanks where due
For me, I know that come what may
One of those is blue

That question still refuses to go:
Why DO I prefer blue?
I shall probably never know
I just know I do!

Or should I see it the other way
As reciprocity?
Could it be that I should say
That blue likes me?

Maybe the answer will come one day
Do not expect it soon
For enlightenment only comes my way
Once in a blue moon

But blue shall continue to tempt my eye
With its strange power to pull
Now at least you all know why
My world is BLUEtiful!

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