We equate colors with emotions. We also talk about the symbolisms of colors, where culture plays a major role usually. For example, yellow could mean power and royalty in China. But in some parts of the world, it could mean cowardice. Commerce has also played a role in establishing meanings to color, e.g., pink for girls, blue for boys. I wonder how this could be reconciled seeing that there is a current gender revolution with the 85 (count not over yet) gender identities. After using emotions and symbolisms to give meanings to colors, we will try something new here just because. This post attempts to link colors to verbs, those action words that push narratives in all directions or stop stories dead in their tracks.

We’ve chosen 9 verbs and 9 colors to represent them. These are things we normally do every day (most of them, that is)—dream, rise, ground, move, flow, laugh, dance, hope, and sleep. Let’s pay attention to each action when we do it and be happy that we are still able, and still around in this world to do so. This tells us that we are alive.

White = Dream

If Colors Were Verbs, What Would These 9 Colors Say? | MyBoysen

A dream is something ethereal and fragile like a cloud or smoke. It cannot be contained. One minute it’s there, the next it’s gone. It floats in the air, changes shape, its edges undefined. It constantly unfurls, thins, vanishes… Dream in white for that tenuous purity of thought that teases you in your sleep. Lie still in slumber and coax it closer to you. One by one they come to alight gently on your mind. Weave the dreams with a light hand for they are delicate. One day, you will suddenly awaken and know that the weaving is over, and that your dream, created from exquisite strands of white, is ready to be born.

Trivia: Not all of us dream in color, some say they only dream in black and white.

Yellow = Rise

If Colors Were Verbs, What Would These 9 Colors Say? | MyBoysen

Rise to the yellow sun and allow its cheerful countenance to bathe you in its golden light. Rise and go out to meet its light. Let the sunbeams stroke your skin, and the energy kiss you awake so that you can greet the day with power and light. If the night brought you unsettling nightmares, rise and let whatever remaining miasmas that are clinging to you evaporate under the sun’s healing rays.

Tip: Get essential Vitamin D by bathing in sunlight early in the morning for about 30 minutes. According to experience, before 7:30 feels energizing. Don’t go out so late because the heat becomes enervating as the day progresses.

Brown = Ground

If Colors Were Verbs, What Would These 9 Colors Say? | MyBoysen

We’ve chosen brown for ground because an earth tone is best for this verb. Ground yourself by walking barefoot on the earth. Studies have shown that regular grounding or earthing, which means connecting our bodies to the earth, balances our physiology.  It reduces inflammation, pain, and stress. Ground yourself to improve your blood flow, increase your energy, and sleep better. All you need to do is just walk barefoot on the earth, for about 30 minutes. Do this together while you get your Vitamin D. No cost and so easy to do. Find your patch of ground and “Walk as if you are kissing the Earth with your feet.” (Thich Nhat Hanh, Peace Is Every Step: The Path of Mindfulness in Everyday Life)

Tidbit: Read Earthing by Clinton Ober, Stephen T. Sinatra, M.D., Martin Zucker. Or you can also watch this 15-minute documentary, just click on this Down to Earth documentary. If you like it, watch the movie.

Red = Move

Move has to be red, a color of action and energy. Move your body because that’s what it is meant for. Give it some love by finding opportunities throughout the day, many times a day, to regularly do what it is in its nature to do. Move! Don’t overthink your movements. Many of us have forgotten to listen to our bodies because we are just inhabiting our minds too much (I’m talking to myself). But just bring your attention to each part of your body from the top of your head to the tip of your toes. Sitting too much? Walk. Neck stiff? Do some head rolls. Back aches? The cat-cow pose in yoga is amazingly helpful. Take those stairs. Walk around the block (when ECQ is lifted, that is). Stand instead of sit.

Trivia: Lil Hansen, who passed last year at 108-1/2 years old, said that her secret to longevity was to stay active and just keep going.

Blue = Flow

Flow is blue, a color associated with water and the sky. Flow is being in the zone. It’s that feeling of being in a state where mind and body are one, a time when everything seems to fall into place when you do something extremely well even without expending too much energy. It’s like you are faced with a complex task and your fairy godmother appears, waves her wand, and poof, the job is done. Except in flow, you are responsible for the achievement. Professional athletes like Hidilyn Diaz know though that it takes years of hours of practice every day to get in the flow. In Chinese philosophy, flow is called wu wei (effortless action). Japanese martial artists coined the term mushin (mind of no mind), “describing a heightened state of awareness where thoughts or emotions no longer get in the way of achieving peak human performance.” (iwoca.co.uk)

Tidbit: See how athletes describe flow in this video. Flow, however, is not limited only to sports. Think about what it is you can do with such ease because you’ve always loved doing it and you’ve had so much practice that you just get better and better.

Orange = Laugh

Orange is such a bright and cheerful color that speaks of fun and laughter. If you’ve ever lived in a temperate country, there is such a feeling of promise and joy when spring comes after a long winter. The world bursts with color as flowers push their way out of the earth. Every time I see a wild garden, Ralph Waldo Emerson’s words always comes to mind, “Earth laughs in flowers…” Laugh when you can. Sometimes, you may start out half-heartedly but next thing you know, the laughter turns into guffaws into ROFL , then you’d feel that your joy is hearty and sincere. A laugh given is a laugh shared. Pretty soon, you will have people getting bright and cheerful around you. Laughter is a better contagion than Covid-19, that’s for sure. It’s healthy! So go on, ha ha ha your way to a happy life.

Tidbit: This was a market stunt but it worked! Watch the video.

Pink = Dance

Dance your way through life. We’ve chosen pink for dance because it’s such a warm, fun, and lively color. Pick up your feet, stretch out your arms, extend your body until you become the biggest and widest you can be, then dance. Maskipaps. Take your space with no apologies. You have every right to be here just like anyone else. It helps if you’ve got a good beat going in your head. Don’t mind the people.

Tidbit:  “Dance like nobody’s watching; love like you’ve never been hurt. Sing like nobody’s listening; live like it’s heaven on earth.” (Anonymous)

Green = Hope

Green is for life, and “while there’s life, there’s hope.” That’s a quote from the Roman statesman and philosopher Marcus Tullius Cicero, born in 106 BC. That’s really a long, long, long time ago. But still his teachings remain relevant up to today. Hope is a fragile thing but it can move mountains or help us find the bridge to get to the other side. These days, we need hope because life has been so turbulent for most of us. Hope, prayer, and kindness.  Keep the hope alive that life will get better. Send up a prayer for all of us to weather this storm. Show kindness by helping those in need in whatever way we can.

Trivia: Cicero is also the guy who said, “If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need.” I would like to add a kitchen, pretty please.

Indigo = Sleep

Indigo, a deep dark blue with a hint of purple, is the color of the night and the color we’ve chosen for sleep. Sleep is one of the most underrated things in this world. Most of us think that we can survive on just a few hours of sleep (count me in). Children of the modern age no longer understand the importance of the circadian rhythm, a natural cycle that we are all regulated by. Sleep to remove toxins in your brain and recharge your cells, to refresh your body and mind, so that you will have the energy to face another day.

Tip: Make sleeping 7 or more hours a night part of your weight loss program.

There you go, that’s our take on the colors for the verbs we’ve chosen. Leave your comment below whether you agree or not. Do you have any verbs you want us to choose colors for? Just drop us a line and we will do our best to oblige. For more fun posts, check out the games section in this blog. Hit subscribe to get all blog updates quickly.

 

Author

Annie is the Managing Editor of Let it B | MyBoysen Blog. An unrepentant workaholic, she runs this blog and her own company Talking Lions (https://talkinglions.com). She thrives on collaborating with people who are good at what they do, and working together with them to create something special. Annie learned interior styling while managing her own wholesale business in the Netherlands, importing high-end, handmade home furnishings to stock four outlets and a showroom in the country.

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