Crayon-Colored World by JL in Ozland

JL in Ozland's Comments:  With thanks to Amos for coinage of the title -- this nostalgia trip is all his fault.

Whatever happened to all the colors
I knew when I was a girl?
The goldenrod days
And the cornflower nights
Flew by in kaleidoscope whirl.

Way back in the 50s, I thought that I had
A world that was shiny and new.
I wore penny loafers
And white bobby sox
And blue jeans that really were blue.

Pink poodle skirts were high fashion then
Rock and roll was a brand-new thing,
And "going steady"
Meant "almost engaged,"
And Elvis wasn't yet King.

My heroes back then were all "manly" men
Who strove for the "American Way."
Bad guys were easy,
They wore the black hats,
And no one was monochrome gray.

Roy Rogers and Trigger, Tonto and Scout,
"Hi yo, Silver, away!"
Pat and his Nellie,
Gene Autry and Champ--
Every Saturday, they saved the day.

The stars twinkled bright in cobalt blue skies
Untouched by the rumor of smog,
And under the lilacs
I played out the seasons
With my little chocolate brown dog.

Crab apple trees bore chartreuse fruit.
The mulberry trees were spring green.
A white sport coat
And a pink carnation
Were making the small-town scene.

The hot lemon sun in the Texas sky
Burned over the fields of maize,
And the old swimming hole
At Wolf Creek Bridge
Was only a turquoise haze.

Sometimes when my world is all muted hues
I wish I could visit back then,
With a brand-new box
Of 64 shades,
On my way back to grade school again.

© Lin Robinson