The Colour of Friendship

[Naseer Ahmed Chandio]

The Color of Friendship

Once upon a time,
The colors of the world
Started to quarrel.
All claimed they were the best,
The most important,
The most useful,
The favorite.

"GREEN" said,
"Clearly I am the most important ...
I am the sign of life and of hope;
I was chosen for grass, trees and leaves,
Without me, all animals would die;
Look over the countryside
And you will see that I am in the majority."

"BLUE" interrupted,
"You only think about the earth,
But consider the sky and the sea ...
It is the water that is the basis of life
And it is drawn up by the clouds from the deep sea;
The sky gives space and peace and serenity,
Without my peace, you would all be nothing."

"YELLOW" chuckled,
"You are all so serious ...
I bring laughter, gaiety, and warmth into the world,
The sun, the moon and the stars are all yellow;
Every time you look at a sunflower,
The whole world starts to smile,
Without me there would be no fun."

"ORANGE" started next to blow her trumpet ...
"I am the color of health and strength,
I may be scarce, but I am precious
For I serve the needs of human life,
I carry the most important vitamins;
Think of carrots, pumpkins, oranges, and mangoes,
I don't hang around all the time,
But when I do, I fill the sky at sunrise or sunset,
My beauty is so striking that no one gives
Another thought to any of you."

"RED" could stand it no longer so he shouted out ...
"I am the ruler of all of you!
I am blood ... life's blood!
I am the color of danger and of bravery,
I am willing to fight for a cause,
I bring fire into the blood;
Without me, the earth would be as empty as the moon,
I am the color of passion and of love,
The red rose, the poinsettia and the poppy."

"PURPLE" rose up to his full height,
He was very tall and spoke with great pomp ...
"I am the color of royalty and power,
Kings, chiefs, and bishops have always chosen me
For I am the sign of authority and wisdom,
People do not question me! They listen and obey."

Finally "INDIGO" spoke,
Much more quietly than all the others,
But with just as much determination ...
"Think of me. I am the color of silence,
You hardly notice me,
But without me you all become superficial;
I represent thought and reflection, twilight and deep water,
You need me for balance and contrast,
For prayer and inner peace."

And so the colors went on boasting,
Each convinced of his or her own superiority.
Their quarreling became louder and louder.
Suddenly there was a startling flash of bright lightning!
Thunder rolled and boomed!
Rain started to pour down relentlessly.
The colors crouched down in fear,
Drawing close to one another for comfort.

In the midst of the clamor, "RAIN" began to speak ...
"You foolish colors, fighting amongst yourselves,
Each trying to dominate the rest;
Don't you know that you were each made
For a special purpose, unique and different?
Join hands with one another and come to me."

Doing as they were told, the colors united and joined hands.
The rain continued,
"From now on, when it rains,
Each of you will stretch across the sky
In a great bow of color as a reminder
That you can all live in peace.
The Rainbow is a sign of hope for tomorrow."