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Friday, 8 August 2014

Green

Green

Green
Is the colour of the nasty plastic
From which they make the folder
Which they give you when they tell you
That your life is about to change
And to which you hold on tightly
Grasping at the meaning
Of all the words you’re hearing

Green
Is the colour of the booklets
The leaflets and the pamphlets
Which they hand to you one by one
To put inside your folder
To build up your collection
Of cancer information
And unwanted reference reading

Green
Is the colour of the typeface
Of the jaunty letter-font
The co-ordinated colour-coded logo
That someone once designed
To appear bright and accessible
For each new unwilling owner
Of this convenient carry-case

Green!
Of all the colours of the rainbow
The massive palette of shades and hues
Who was it that determined green
Might be the fittest tint for oncology?
Some sort of positive signal?
An encouragement to carry on?
Why not healthy-tissue pink?
Or a mildly-cautious amber?
Why not deep-depression blue?
Or the blackness of deep despair?
Why not a sickening yellow?
Or the fiery red of anger?

Green!
I don’t think this is what they meant
When they asked me if I had any questions


 Copyright Andy Fawthrop 2014

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