P...Is For Pink

I am not afraid or embarrassed to say I'm a girlie-girl, and I love, love, love the color pink.  Pink is a very interesting color that doesn’t technically exist on the color spectrum. (However you can make pink by mixing red and white)

Seriously, I kind of like LOVE anything and everything pink.  I have pink hair accessories, pink sweatshirts, pink t-shirts, pink socks, pink nail polish, two pink rings, etc...the list could go on and on, but I don't want to drive you insane bore you to tears. Let's just say I have an obsession with all things pink. As you all know the Breast Cancer Awareness ribbon is pink. I did not have breast cancer but all those who are battling cancer or who have survived cancer relate in one way or another.  In my travels I ran across this poem and thought I'd share it with you.

Pink Ribbons: The Ties That Bind
by Beth Thompson  

I never realized the strength
a tiny bit of ribbon can impart
until I pinned a twist of pink
above my heart to symbolize survival;
until I saw acquaintances and friends
and loved ones wear the same,
in my name, to show their strong support.
It's so hard to reclaim your life
once the crisis ends. You're never sure
it's really over. So courage begins
with the pinning on of symbols
in the face of lasting fears.
Once the illness touches you,
you know you can't depend on cures
to last forever, so you wear pink
to show the world, and show yourself,
you're still there, and you intend to stay.
Courage is persisting in the face of fear,
not waiting until it disappears to soldier on.
A pink ribbon twist to symbolize endurance with a bit of flair -
you're still there!
We've always decorated life with ribbons:
pink or blue to celebrate the newborn
gift of life, and later, bows for gifts
to mark each birthday celebration.
Christmas bows on boxes or on wreathes,
and loops of ribbon delicate as orchids
for a first corsage or for an anniversary, counting many loving years.
Ribbons range from small reminding bows tied on fingers
to giant rosettes of blue and gold to signify a prize-winning day.
We hold together memories of life with ribbon ties.
But ribbons took on a deeper meaning
as colors came to symbolize a cause.
Those yellow ribbons tied on trees
were hope and wishes for a loved one
coming home. Ribbons pinned on uniforms, reminders of bravery
long after wars have ended: deliberately colorful as if
to triumph over conflict, over pain.
We wear what we want to say, our pledge,
what we want others to remember and respect.
So my small twist of pink
becomes the symbol of a victory
in my own small, terrifying war
and helps me seek each day
the courage to carry on.
It tells the feelings I can't always
speak aloud, from a heart grown strong,
a thousand hearts grown strong,
despite the delicate shade of pink...
the courage to believe, to heal,
the courage to carry on. 


So with that I will leave you with a video called the Pink Glove Dance. Enjoy!

I believe in the sun even when it is not shining. I believe in love even when I feel it not. I believe in God even when He is silent. *Written on a wall in a concentration camp*


© 2012 Shannon M. King. This publication is the exclusive property of Shannon M. King and is protected under the US Copyright Act of 1976 and all other applicable international, federal, state and local laws. The contents of this post/story may not be reproduced as a whole or in part, by any means whatsoever, without consent of the author, Shannon M. King. All rights reserved.