Colours have always fascinated me, more so if they are true colours. You would perhaps be puzzled as to what I mean by that. Please do read on to fathom what I am hinting at.
We come across colours in various aspects of our daily life. One of them is hair dye. To dye or not to dye — that is the question. This is a conundrum I face each time I dye my hair with chemicals. I can still recall the first time I decided to dye my hair. I had a panic attack. I felt that I was doing something that was against the laws of nature. There was an animated discussion at the dining table. My family members too did not like the idea of dyeing hair but then it dawned upon them that the true colour of my hair was not very flattering. Thus, they grudgingly decided in favour of dyeing and the colour of my crowning glory changed to jet black almost magically. So much for true colours!
There is an unanswered question in my mind as to how long I should shy away from the true colour of my hair. When it comes to hair colour, black is any day beautiful but then ageing is all about shades of grey. The COVID-19 pandemic has helped many to come to terms with this fact. With social gatherings and public appearances having hit a nadir, many have begun to show their true (hair) colour and the frequency of dyeing has reduced. There is a certain disillusionment, with basic existence having become uncertain. Thus, the enthusiasm among the middle-aged to look young has somewhat dwindled. Salt and pepper hair is being accepted with great aplomb. People are beginning to accept their true (hair) colour.
Many no longer bother to mask the copious strands of grey on the scalp. Masking has now completely shifted southwards to the nose and the mouth. The saviour mask is helping men hide the grey strands in the moustache. Another yeoman service it is doing is that of saving them from the daily rigmarole of shaving. As they say, there is a positive side of every adversity. Every cloud has a silver lining – just that in this case the cloud is one’s scalp and the silver lining the strands of grey hair!
Another monotonous activity where one is faced with true colours is the laundry. Now that many of us do not have the luxury of domestic helps doing chores for us, we are learning about colours the hard way. There are some garments that keep demonstrating their true colour till the day they are disdainfully discarded. They believe in rubbing off their colour to other clothes which enjoy their company in the washing machine The colours of these garments bleed till the last wash teaching you valuable lessons about persistence. Indigo, Peacock blue and magenta are particularly notorious and show their true colour from the very first wash. You learn about the true colours of garments (as well as people!!) only after a few accidents. The blotches of red or blue on your favourite white garment become a grim reminder of how the washing was completely botched up. Once this happens, you comprehend that this feat should not be achieved a second time.
Let me end by saying that while colours of hair and clothes can still be dealt with and managed at some level, recognizing and dealing with the true colours of people around you is by far the most challenging task. There are many people who can give the chameleon a run for its money. It is important to keep away from them.
Trivia 