"Orange, Revisited"
What color do you think you possess?
I once visited a place in Hongdae that was quite famous at the time. It had a unique atmosphere. In the middle of the room, there was a white bookshelf like structure filled with beautiful bottles arranged by color. Each bottle was stunning and emitted a strange, captivating charm.
The fortune teller told me, "Pick the colors you like. You can choose as many as you want." After some thought, I selected yellow, orange, red, sky blue, light green, and finally green. As I placed the colors one by one, they harmonized beautifully, making the scene even more charming. Then the fortune teller asked for my birthdate, wrote something down, and took out her own set of colored bottles. There were white, orange, and yellow bottles, each filled with different amounts of color.
She told me, "You have a lot of orange in you. This color means you are likely to attract attention and may face envy, especially in workplaces with many women." Hearing this, it felt as though she had seen right through me. In the airline and travel departments I had worked in, there were so many women, and the stress I felt was beyond words. From that moment on, I began to think deeply about my colors, especially orange.
Since I was young, I had always liked primary colors like red, black, white, and navy. People often told me that navy and red suited me well. However, as I reflected on the fortune teller's words, I realized that orange and yellow had already found a place within me. Still, strangely, I had lived rejecting orange. I disliked drawing attention or standing out. So, I tried to live quietly, avoiding being noticed. But occasionally, the orange within me would shine through, drawing curiosity from others, and at times, it led to special treatment. I even miss those moments now.
One day, during my graduate school graduation, I was taking photos in my gown when the photographer said, "That gown looks perfect on you. The mortarboard is great too." I thought it was just a polite remark. But after the outdoor shoot, other students joined in, laughing and saying, "What’s this? The gown looks just like everyday clothes on you. It really suits you!" The photographer took more pictures of me than anyone else and even went ahead of the secretary to personally take my photo.
It was then that I looked down at my graduation gown. The hood on it was orange. "Ah, there you are. Long time no see, orange." In that moment, orange felt like an old friend. Although it had been distant for a while, this time, it suited me, and I felt grateful. The orange I had once rejected now looked different to me.
From that day on, I decided to embrace orange. I no longer want to hide my true colors, but instead, I want to live confidently, showing myself as I am. Like orange, I want to live with brightness and warmth, and for the first time in a long while, I smile at myself.
