The Colours of Pilgrimage
Through my lens,
The spectrum comes alive;
In captured images,
The Rainbow shines.
The six-part harmony of
Red – Orange – Yellow
Green – Blue – Violet
Makes music for our eyes.
The myriad hues between
Fill our senses
Bring joy.
Muted pastel shades
Enfold us softly
Bring calm.
What are the colours of pilgrimage?
What are the colours etched in our souls from this journey?
RED
Dragons everywhere.
The red one victorious over evil.
Pentecost in Wales.
Banners made by children in the church
Proclaim the Holy Spirit.
The warmth of a scarlet jacket.
Crimson jam on a scone topped with cream made by caring
hands.
A massive door beckoning pilgrims to a woodland enclave… RED
PINK (merely a paler shade of RED)
A tiny flower hiding in the grass…
So many pinks—baby pink, carnation pink, bubblegum, azalea,
rose,
fuchsia, hot pink…
But Barbie Pink, in Wales?
How did that happen?
The best PINK of all! The feet of a pilgrim on the
journey.
ORANGE
The flames of Pentecost…
Votives lit in prayer and praise…
The candle in the prayer circle – burning
in our imaginations
when
matches were gone.
Where have all the flowers gone?
Gone to young girls, everyone.
Where have all the young girls gone?
Gone to young men, everyone.
Where have all the young men gone?
Gone for soldiers, everyone.
Where have all the soldiers gone?
Gone to graveyards, everyone.
Where have all the graveyards gone?
Gone to flowers, everyone… (Pete Seeger)
 |
| Memorial garden in the shape of a military medal |
MELON (just a paler shade of ORANGE)
Fleecy, warm – shelter from the wind
Ground cover for pondering
YELLOW
Pilgrims think of home espying dandelions and buttercups.
Is anyone mowing while we are away?
Gorse – pretty to behold… hiding the spikes of painful
thorns…
Gracing every hillside and field with a riotous blaze of
YELLOW
Keeping the sheep in check – impenetrable
GREEN
It is everywhere – pervasive – in every shop the green of
nation
On every hillside – in every valley – the pastures are
emerald.
From meadows to sea – GREEN
Patina – the green of aging, mellowing, permanence.
BLUE
At last – it is in the sky glorious and radiant.
Gray gives way to azure filled with light.
Windows – royal and regal in deepest ecumenical BLUE
Tell of a union of spirits – Muslim and Christian together.
A pilgrim in blue rests and reflects...
VIOLET
“When I am old I shall wear purple” someone said.
The fields wear lavender,
The rocks sprout lilac-hued blossoms,
The baskets brim with purple radiance,
The lava is… MAUVE? How
can that be?
A puffy orchid jacket wards off the cold.
The colours of pilgrimage evoke memories
The colours fill and nurture us
The colours speak to us.
Touch
Listen… See… Feel…
But wait… there are more.
BROWN
Everywhere … every day…
BROWN
Cadbury - need I say more?
Pews… rails … altars in polished wood of richest amber
Carvings that tell and retell ancient stories.
Jackets on potatoes at lunch...
The gifts to our souls (no make that soles) from furry dogs…
Massive wooden doors protecting, sheltering, welcoming.
GOLD
The colour of royalty, of kings, of our King.
Gold, frankincense, myrhh…
Simon’s freshly pressed shirt.
Turbines – stewards of the resources of creation.
White Lion – why we pondered so many…
Heralding the crest of families long forgotten
Entombed in
the graveyard…
NOT QUITE WHITE
Porridge – filling, sustenance, warmth…
Sheep who surely know their shepherd as we do ours
Learning to like milk in tea
Foam from the pounding waves
Sheep’s wool tucked in cracks of walls
(no Corning Pink
Panther here!)
BLACK
Ubiquitous
Did we count how many black coats, parkas,
jackets made
pilgrimage?
How many pairs of black pants?
Is black the colour of
pilgrimage?
What did the medieval pilgrims wear I wonder?
Did they see the black-faced sheep?
Did they marvel at the ebony lava?
Did they use charcoal to capture images
on parchment, on sheepskin?
Did even one of them have a black shirt
with a bejeweled emblazoned dragon?
GRAY
The colour that almost is not a colour
More prevalent than any other hue.
Neutral, pervasive, stark
against the blue of sky and green
of field…
Gargoyles of gray with contorted faces…
Warding off evil, entertaining, telling tales.
Or simply to entertain... how many
hundreds of years has this pup
scratched his ear?
Boulders, rocks, stones, pebbles
united to craft walls of
strength and beauty.
Slabs carved and honed to fashion arches and doorways
strong and lasting.
Clouds bursting with rain, hail and giving way to sun and
warmth
Sophia – grey and elusive and mysterious
Tombs that attest to mortality
names erased by nature and
time
Glorious cathedrals, tiny chapels
from artisans and
architects of old
Still surround us – protective, uplifting,
living monuments
to past, present, future.
MAGENTA and TEAL
Cradling pilgrim shells
Holding water – the source of life
From a holy sacred well
The final colours of Wales
In Thanksgiving for God's Own Plan for us in Wales
