Blaine Burden
Apr 8, 2024
I’ve forgotten what the color green looks like.
Green, as in grass. My house was modest and had a grassy backyard permeated with weeds (I hated weeds then. I would kill to see one now). I would sit on the rocking chair with my sketchbook and try to replicate each blade onto the paper. My childish hands could only do so much before a smudge would inevitably discourage me. Still, I found comfort outside. Right after a rain when the grass was still soft and wet. I’d lay down on it and watch the world come through the pores in the dirt. Morning doves would sing their mourning songs, or maybe it was the other way around.
Green, as in youth. I was only a grade schooler then, sneaking off into the yard to draw while my busy mom thought I was just doing my homework. (It’s homework, to me. Home, planet Earth. Homework. I am studying my world. Isn’t that important enough?). I got caught, and she’d ask me why in the world I’d put off my studies like that, when I know the only way to make a difference out there is to make one inside you, in your brain. I couldn’t explain to her that we didn’t have the time, it evaded me. I couldn’t remember. Trying to remember is like grasping at a wisp of smoke. Smoke. Fire. It was our fault, you know. Greed. It burned us through and burnt through the world. Green, greed.
Where was I? Green, the color of forests. I only ever visited a forest once, and I got lost. (Lost, but to me I was found). We were hiking, and one second I was with and the other without, but to me it didn’t matter, all I could think to do was put one foot in front of the other, mesmerized and charmed. My mother had to call the police to smoke me out of there. I never ever went back. I don’t think that forest has ever left me. I was so small I had to crane my neck all the way to catch that canopy. The sun brought forth shades of emerald, sage, pine..
I’ve forgotten what green looks like. (Rather, I miss it.)
About the Author:
Blaine Burden is a young writer with an affinity in art and reading. She is a hardworking student who has a passion for analyzing psychological elements in pieces of media. While she prefers creative writing, she often pours her effort into writing for school which gives her the means to showcase her argumentative and analytical prowess. To Blaine, writing is a form of self-expression, and she hopes to continue her creative work in tandem with her post-graduation studies in medicine.