Anxiety Is the Color Pink

A towel that is white is useful 
and can clean and be cleaned. 
A towel is most functional 
in this form. 

And suddenly a sock, 
a sock that is red 
is thrown into the wash
and now our white towel 
is pink. 

How the towel tossed and turned and 
fought and squirmed about in that basin 
with the sock, trying to squish 
against the walls and avoid that 
seeping, insidious, leaking red dye. 

But it soaked in and became apart of the 
towel, all the same. 
entwined in its fibers, 
pounded into its weaving
mercilessly soaking into its being. 

Nothing is white for the towel anymore, 
not bodies to dry or water to clean 
it is pink all pink that spreads and separates
and the towel may no longer experience 
white. 

Our towel, once white is tinged, 
singed, tainted, corrupted, violated. 
It is not its whole self, a towel, that is, 
it is an unclean rag that is tired and 
worn out, frayed and stained. 

Sure we can toss the towel in the wash, 
douse its body in abrasive bleach to 
try to wipe clean the slate and return 
our towel to its most useful state. 
But our towel will thin, and pill, and remain 
just a little bit pink.
Copyright © | Year Posted 2016

Poem

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A  Avatar
September 15, 2016 at 11:20 PM
Vien, Welcome to Poetry Soup. It will be a delight to read and become familiar with your poems in the future. As for now, I will greet you with the same smile others passed when I first joined the soup. Wishing you and your poetry the best. I hope you get to meet all the nice poets around here STARTING with me- SKAT :) Drop a hello and tell me a little about yourself if you wish. I would like to be your newest poetry soup "FRIEND" Hugs **YNR - SKAT
A   Avatar
September 15, 2016 at 8:01 PM
Very good for a first post, Vien, ,Welcome to Poetry soup, I hope you enjoy the community. Here, you will find friendly poets who enjoy supporting one another. I myself, enjoy reading and commenting those who want to be read. The only time I give constructive criticism is when a poet desires it. However, if for some reason the poem is not my field I will guide you to someone who is more qualified than I. Stop by and read one of my poems if you like. My poems are not perfect, but I have a feeling you might like one. I encourage you to check out the contest page and read to receive comments. Tell me a little about your poetic skills if you like. It will be my pleasure to follow and read every poem you post from here on :) We are Lucky To Have you. Your New Poet Friend @-> LINDA <-@
Macmillan Avatar
September 14, 2016 at 9:20 PM
I get the analogy. Me? I think that wholeness and purity are not necessarily related and that clean is a state of mind. Welcome to soup, a pink kind of place with pink kind of people. Cheers.
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