We all have a universe of colors inside of us
too bad we never paint with the primary ones

a dash of her
a swirl of him
mix it up
splatter your face
and then
tell me when
you are ready
to show the world
these colors--
the ones you call your "own"
because it's safer that way

It's safer to sway in the shade
of another creature's color
and call it your own,
because at least you won't be alone

We're all just cool, sad, fine, tired
hungry, *****, happy, and uninspired--
we've all seen the rainbow
but where are the colors in between?

what about jubilant, irate, ecstatic
effervescent, elated, broken, sporadic

where is indigo, chartreuse, pavo,
teal, aquamarine tangerine or colors thought unreal?

our own primary colors
are not just red-yellow-blue
the people that surround us
are not just her-him-me-you
primary colors are those
that cannot be made from mixture


paint with your colors,
the ones the world has never seen
after all,
no one holds a paintbrush
like you do.