The Color Red

Hello, all my dear readers! I hope you all have had a good few weeks. Mine have been full of exams, test and colds. :( Not fun, but I felt that I needed to update my blog and so here I am on a Saturday morning in my school’s cafetiere with a cup of Chai tea to aid my sore throat. For the past week I had been wondering what I wanted to post about. Should I go on a rant about the stresses of college life? Or maybe I should make it more lighthearted and humorous with an awkward tale about me walking in on a friend having sex?(I got a flash of her ass. Our relationship will never be the same.) However, after some contemplation I decided that I wold rather write about something simple, something personal, something that everyone could relate to and so I decided why to write about my favorite color, red.

As far back as I can remember red has always been my favorite color. It didn’t matter much which shade of red. For some reason I’ve just always clicked with red (perhaps it’s my soul color), I thought pink and blue were horribly cliche and weak colors compared to red which was strong, powerful, beautiful and most of all alarming. It could catch anyone’s attention and draw them in with its richness yet it was so powerful that it didn’t really need anyone’s attention because it could stand strong by itself. I admired this color and one day hoped to be just like it. Confident, beautiful, eye catching and independent.

Have you ever been to a cook out and watched the flames on the grill dance wildly on the dark charcoal int the grill, completely dominating it? Like most people I always associated fire or heat with the color red. I would sit out on the house patio on those warm summer days and watch my uncle start the grill (We never used a propane grill, always charcoal. That was the way my grandpa liked it). He would first take off the racks and then drop the bag of charcoal into the pit. A small piece of paper would be lit and thrown in as well just to get the flame going. He’d let it burn for awhile before adding lighter fluid. As the fuel touched the dead rocks the fire would suddenly come alive. It would blaze up from the pit with so much heat that my uncle would take a few steps back.

The flames would dance almost tauntingly, as if they were daring my uncle to come any closer. It was a challenge that he never accepted. He’d wait for it to die down before approaching the grill again, but even then he’d be careful. Wary of the fact that it isn’t wise to play with fire because you will get burned or worse.

I would sit and just watch the flames, completely mesmerized by the swirling colors of orange, yellow and red. I would watch how the flames would move wistfully from left to right, right to left. The heat would radiate from the fire in long strands of warmth that would engulf me with their warmth and make me feel safe. I was kept away from the coldness of life at that moment and completely transported to another world where the sun touched every part of my skin.

Have you ever seen the Hunchback of Notradame? Remember the part where the crazy guy is picturing Ezmerelda dancing in the flames, her hips moving in a way that hit his temptation at the core? Drawing him in. Just picture it like that. She had many of the characteristics of fire after all. Strong, beautiful and desireable. He tried to play with fire and in the end he got burned.

To end this long post about one color let me say this. In my opinion red is a symbol of life. It’s the color of blood which is what runs through us to make us live. It is also the color of love. During Vday I like everyone else see how red hearts invade all stores and red rose sales sky rocket. Yet it can also be a warning of danger, an alarm to let you know not to approach. This one color has so many meanings behind it, it has variety and that’s just another reason why it is my favorite color. However, I think the reason I love red the most is because to me it symbolizes the color of a warrior.

When I was young I had this red hood I would wear. When I pulled the hoody over my head I felt like I was protected from all outside forces. Nothing would mess with me when I wore that hood because I was no longer Tasha, I was a warrior, a force to be reckoned with. Til this day when I think of that red hood I think of the warrior inside of me that can withstand anything. I know I can go through it all and still come out at the end because I am a warrior.

Juniata College Welcomes Bill Yoast!

  Hello, all my readers! As usual its been awhile since I’ve last written. I believe its probably been two weeks or a little over, I think. Well either way sorry about the wait. I try to write as often as possible but my professors do love to dish out the work. Anyway on to the topic about this post. Tomorrow evening Bill Yoast will visit my college to speak. If you don’t know, Bill Yoast is the coach portrayed in the film “Remember the Titans” which is based on true events.

      “Remember the Titans” tells the story of two football coaches and their racially diverse football team. A white coach (Bill Yoast) and a black coach (Herman Boone) come at odds when Herman replaces Bill as the head coach and adds new recruits to the team. Previously the team had been only white, but under Herman’s leadership black students were allowed to play on the team as well. There is obvious racial tension through out the movie, but this tension fades as the players ( and the coaches) gain respect for one another and eventually form friendships.

      When I saw the poster about Mr. Yoast’s visit it made me think of a conversation me and my best friend had during our summer vacation. My best friend is white and I’m black. In today’s world a lot of people would think that this fact doesn’t make a difference, but actually it does. We always disagree about the effects of race in the modern world. I believe that race and racism is still an issue. People are still discriminated against and hated because of the color of their skin. I believe that there are still people out there who will treat a person differently depending on their skin color. Now my friend is the complete opposite. She doesn’t think racism exists anymore (or at least isn’t an issue like it use to be which I can agree with to a certain extent).

      We constantly argue about race and beauty, race and opportunities, race and work. Growing up in the black community I witnessed the favoritism men would show to women of a lighter complexion. Now I’m not saying all guys are like that, I’m just telling you all what I witnessed. Most of my black female friends would agree with me when I discuss this topic. I think it really stems back from slavery. The lighter skin slaves were house slaves, a step above the darker skin field slaves so of course through out the generations the darker slaves came to believe that lighter (or whiter) was better. That’s why we have skin lightening creams and perms to straighten black hair. True it can curl straight hair, but that’s not why black people buy it.

    Thankfully in today’s world people of color have the opportunity to go to school and choose a career. There are even special minority scholarships offered to aid in just that purpose, but despite all this I can’t believe that certain opportunities may not be offered to individuals based on their race. I just refuse because I honsetly think racism will always exist. I hope it will one day eventually fade away, but that is not what I think. There’s an obvious difference between thinking and hoping.

     The point I’m trying to make is that racism still does exist and still can effect an individual. And let it be noted that when I say racism I don’t mean just whites against blacks. I mean all forms of racism because all forms of racism are wrong. Perhaps one day my friend and I will learn to agree to disagree on the extent and reach of today’s racism. Maybe we never will, but that doesn’t matter because my best friend will always be just that no matter her color. Until next time!