They said it was a marriage of color.
They said it was a message of strength & hopefulness.
They said it’s good to push two shades close together.
They didn’t say that illumination makes the gray grayer.
They didn’t say shadows make the sun brighter.
They didn’t say eventually all paint peels.
(They didn’t need to put ultimate in front of gray.)
They never asked what was most valuable to us. They never asked
how much coverage we needed.
I would have said gray dusk is not uplifting.
I would have said sunlight hurts my eyes after tears.
I would have said I lied only when I had to.
To avoid staining my hands, I would have done anything.
I never would have dropped that match so close to him.
Anacapa Review, September 1, 2025