Orange Dahlia

A friend remarked that I reminded her
Of an orange dahlia,
A flower I had seen once
And a color I avoid.

I like the layered look of a dahlia’s petals.
I like their charming Mickey Mouse-ear shape.

I’ve never met a person whose favorite
Color is orange. That honor goes to
Blue, pink, purple.
And yet orange is needed, too;
It offers interesting contrast.
And it is far more rare in nature than
Blue and green.

So, multi-dimensional, charming,
Interesting and rare.
Fine.

I asked her, some years later,
If I was a still an orange dahlia.

“No, now I think of you like a shimmery rainbow.”
At the time, I thought that sounded better,
More complete. Biblically meaningful, even.

As if a person can be summed up so simply.