Its gaze contemplates
outerspace and the countless
stars it contains---the
spectrum of their light like a
rainbow's: even lavender.
Kyakuchuu
Author's Notes/Comments:
James Webb, for whom the telescope has been named, was a NASA administrator who had served, prior to that, as an Undersecretary of State. He has been criticized in regard to the "Lavender Scare" (q.v.), and while complicity has not been proven, one wonders if his silence was not a tacit approval (this is only an after-the-fact bystander's opinion; I have no evidence, and know of none, that discloses his personal opinion). The telescope that bears his name, however, does not discriminate as to the color or the orientation (please excuse the pun) of the stars it observes and photographs; nor does it assign any pejorative meaning to the color lavender.
A "lavender scare," that does
A "lavender scare," that does raise the proverbial eyebrow and calls for a look into. Lavender in my head is a soothing and healing plant with medical qualities.
here is poetry that doesn't always conform
galateus, arkayye, arqios,arquious, crypticbard, excalibard, wordweaver
Thank you. For some reason,
Thank you. For some reason, I have always associated lavender with lilac, and lilac with Easter (probably because my grandmother's lilac bush always bloomed around or after Easter). The use of the color as a prejudicial label is offensive to me. It should be restored to its soothing properties, both as an herb and as a color.
J-Called