If you were to ask me if I liked pink, I’d tell you that I did not.
However, the other day when Greg, the landscaper, was here chatting with me about our next big project, he started talking about color. He was taking notes about my vague ideas about what I wanted him to do next in the flower beds out front along the sidewalk leading up to the front door.
• • •
He asked me what colors I wanted to see along there. I told him no pink.
Being the polite sort of man that he is, he merely raised one eyebrow and tilted his head in about five different directions. My eyes followed where he was subtly pointing.
And what did I see? Oh pots & pots of pink flowers and many pink rose bushes. All over the property. Uh huh.
• • •
After I stopped laughing at myself, I looked over at him. He said nothing but held up his pad of paper on which he’d written one word. In very large letters. And the word was: PINK. The color that we’ll be seeing along the front sidewalk.
The color that, apparently, I like.
THE SPECTACLED BEAN 
Oh, same here. I was a pink hater, especially disdainful when I had two boys. Our many trips to Toys R Us and seeing The Barbie Aisle did that. But little by little, I realized that I love pink. There are a hundred shades of it, and I love them all. I love its big sister Red, too. But pink is so pretty and can be so many things. It’s hard to realize that, as a woman, you Love Pink (how cliché!), but there it is. With my coloring, it’s also a flattering color to wear. Own it, Ally! I did. COME TO THE PINK SIDE.
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nance, you have made my morning! My mother despised pink. She wouldn’t dress me in it, although red was ok by her. I think that I adopted her point of view without even realizing it. And it wasn’t until the other day that it became clear to me that I was my own woman about pink. Yes, I have come to the pink side.
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I’m with you, Ally. I despised pink growing up. But probably because there was no way I could wear it with my hair! As I’ve aged, I’ve changed my mind (some). It depends on the shade. I actually have a pink cardigan that I wear in the spring now:) I remember a pale pink (LL Bean?) top you wore that looked great with your coloring. Enjoy your new pink flowers!
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Beth, I think that you and nance make an excellent point that when it comes to pink, it’s all about the particular shade. As an adult I occasionally wear pink, but usually in the winter when my skin tone is faded and it gives me a subtle boost of color. [I remember that top btw! Long gone.]
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I love pink flowers! I would love to have them everywhere with purple and yellow 🙂
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belle, it would seem that I, too, love pink flowers! I like purple flowers more, truth be known, but they are more difficult to come by for some reason. So pink it is.
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I have purple petunia’s that I do enjoy in my flower basket. Any flower truth be told brightens my day 🙂
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Was this funny! Not a pink person either…but a couple of hardy little plants are also wildly glowing pink in the back yard…not rose…not coral…pink. They survive everything and ask for so little, so this year I tried to give them some “like”…the are endearing….like that pig in the pot (great pig!)
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philosophermouse, it was a funny conversation as it was happening. There I was so sure of myself– and across from me was a kind man just waiting for me to catch on to reality. I know what you mean about these pink plants, they are so easy to grow… and look pretty… once you decide to like ’em.
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Oh dear! I am definitely a pink and purple person. My mantra is no orange. There are so many shades of any color that you can always find something you like. I especially love fuchsia flowers because they make a statement and you can see them from a distance.
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kate, I agree about the no orange rule. That color in the garden is too much for me. I like fuchsia, too. For the same reason that you mention– I can see them clearly.
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There is pink and there is pink. You just don’t like pink. Flowers are great – underlying tone in wall color (pink/taupe – close enough) – not so much.
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Yes, Zen-Den, there is pink that I can work with in the garden; and then there is pink that is forever banished inside our house. As God as my Witness, no pink undertones shall ever sully our walls again.
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Very funny! I can just picture you looking around and maybe even turning pink. Perhaps if you thought of them as rose, fuchsia, cerise, or carmine? More sophisticated colors, for sure, than little girl pink.
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Zazzy, yes, that’s it! I need sophisticated names for all these shades of pink so that I can feel more comfortable saying that I like pink. You’ve hit the nail on the head. Thank you.
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My favorite color flower is coral or orange, but otherwise I tend to go dark pink or purple.(especially dark) My husband liked yellow and white, but I’m not a fan of those.
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Margaret, we have some coral roses on the side of the house and they’re pretty. I don’t like orange around this house because it fights with the color of the brick. But this whole I Like Pink revelation has thrown me for a loop.
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You like pink flowers! (not necessarily pink rooms or pink clothes) 😉 By the way, I would buy every single flower you have!!
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Margaret, you’ve said it perfectly. I like pink, but reserve the right to not like pink in certain situations to be determined on an ad hoc basis. 😉
Also, if you lived around here you would buy every single flower that we have because that’s what there is to buy. 80% of the flowers that I see for sale are pink. Always.
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The color of the flowers in the second photo would have been described by my mother as being “pank,” her word for very intense pink. 🙂
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la p, I LOVE that word. I like pank very much, but I’m still having a difficult time wrapping my head around pink.
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