Some colors are hard, like puce, but green
seems easy. Grass and trees, that verdant scene.
But green’s not one thing. Try to picture celadon,
which I’d never heard of until I looked it up on
my computer. And there’s kelly, harlequin and mint,
honeydew, neon and hunter to make you squint.
Another easy one is simple plain blue.
But there’s periwinkle, savoy, and duck, too.
What are uranian, Argentinian, and Celtic? I’ve no idea.
I’m lost at sea, in a sea of blue, I fear.
O glorious shades of red: vermilion, cinnabar, garnet,
madder, carnelian, and others I don’t know, darn it.
Shorten the wavelength and you’ll get orange,
including tangerine, saffron and apricot. Binge
on pumpkin, persimmon, butterscotch and peach,
delicious auburn foods within your reach.
Colors may be hard, but tastes are easy:
salt, sweet, bitter and sour. But what’s umami?