March 1994 T PAGE 19 Q-Notes
Show your true colors
J nrnhlftm mmes when someone refuses t
by Elisabeth Tate
Q-Notes Staff
“But I see your true colors
shining through
I see your true colors
and that’s why I love you
so don’t be afraid to let them show
your true colors.
true colors are beautiful
like a rainbow.... ”
—from Cindy Lauper’s True Colors
I love the fact that the national symbol for
the gay and lesbian community is the rainbow
flag. I have always loved rainbows, and
although I am aware that they are often over
used in a cliched or trite way, I am also aware
that they can represent hope, unity and even
celebration. Jesse Jackson used the rainbow
as a symbol during his unsuccessful presiden
tial campaign, calling his constituents a Rain
bow Coalition. Even Kermit the Frog sang
about the rainbow connection, “...the lovers,
the dreamers, and me....”
In my science classes over the years, I
have encountered rainbows in other ways. In
chemistry, a spectrum of light becomes a
signature pattern identifying every element
and compound. In astronomy, the movement
and distance of stars and galaxies can be
measured using shifts in the light spectrum,
or by the colors represented. We use color
descriptions of our emotional states—red for
rage, green for envy or jealousy, yellow for
cowardly, blue for depression, black for an
ger, “in the pink,” feeling peachy, and so
forth. We see rainbows in the clouds or over
waterfalls. We hang faceted glass in our cars
and windows, which catches the light and
casts rainbows around the room.
I recognize more and more how often the
rainbow comes into my life in so many differ
ent ways. And, in thinking about it, I realize
that there is a sense in which I am also a part
of the rainbow myself. I believe it is impor
tant to be able to take the life and light that I
receive and act as a prism with it, breaking it
down into smaller parts and reflecting that
light to others whom I encounter. I believe
that the light that comes to me comes from
God, but others may choose to identify it in
other ways. In any case, each of us has access
to someone or something which energizes us.
We can choose to keep it quiet and private, or
we can choose to share it with others.
I know that there are many people who are
shy, or those who are less than confident in
their talents and abilities. At the same time,
I have never met someone who had nothing
they could share with others that came from
within themselves. I have met quite a few
people who felt they had nothing to give. I
have met people who acted as though they
were the only source of any merit. B ut I have
also met people whose words and actions,
shared with humility and sincerity, were the
greatest and most appropriate gifts that could
have been offered. Tliere is a huge difference
between trying something cautiously and not
trying it at all.
I know that each of us has a rainbow of
colors, a spectrum of possibilities available to
us. What makes it so exciting to think about
it in that way is that no single one of us needs
to be responsible to fill all the colors in. The
problem comes when someone refuses to
share their piece.
When light is passed through a prism, it is
divided into its sinaller components. It is then
possible to reconstruct the colors into a single
beam of light by passing it through another
prism. Imagine, though, looking up at a
rainbow and seeing that the red or the green or
the yellow is missing. Obviously, it would
seem incomplete. If a color were taken out of
the light through the prism, the full light could
not be reconstructed on the other side. In the
same way, our community is diminished and
remains incomplete when there are those who
are unwilling to show their “true colors.”
There are always opportunities available
to get involved, to explore the depth of the
colors we carry. Age need not be a factor.
Last year, at about this time, my parents
decided to extend themselves and so they
volunteered with an AIDS Service Organiza
tion for six weeks. They were given the job
of answering the telephone for a half day each
week. After six weeks, they discovered they
didn’t want to stop so they didn’t. In fact,
their involvement has increased. My father
picks up day-old bread from a local gourmet
bakery and delivers it to another part of the
same organization where it is distributed to
families and individuals whose food sources
are limited. On the other end of the age scale,
my eight-year-old niece goes every week to
visit the residents of a nursing home.
That is the more extroverted method of
showing, or even looking for, one’s true col
ors. Another place to look is within our
selves. I know a number of people who
participate in 12-step programs for any num
ber of reasons. For those who do, and who
take it seriously, the 12 steps provide a guide
toward a fuller, healthier life. The fourth step
asks the participant to make a searching and
fearless moral inventory of herself. More
often than not, people tend to look at their less
desirable traits and concentrate on them.
However, making an inventory doesn’t mean
counting some things and ignoring the pres
ence of others. One of the ways in which we
manage to avoid living more fully is by con
tinuing to convince ourselves of our short
comings. We look at our weaknesses that
need correcting, while ignoring the strengths
that shore us up and keep us going. Showing
our true colors means showing them fully,
recognizing that we will always have issues
to explore and problems to correct.
My hope is that, in this time of spring, of
new life and new beginnings, that more folks
will find their ovra true colors and discover
new ways to display them. The wonderful
variety and the broad spectrum to be found in
our community is part of whathelps it to be so
rich in its beauty.
In a world that is so full of hate and
ugliness, so much poverty, sadness and pain,
we keep looking for the colors of the rainbow
to cheer us on. And we hope some day to
wake up with rainbows of color everywhere
around us — the hungry fed, the dying held,
the maimed walking, the angry stroked, the
violent calmed, the oppressed freed, the op
pressor changed, the every tear wiped away.
And that litany of change will be found one
day — when we learn to be rainbows to each
other.
Speedy, Priiit:ing
‘padC, ^P*Ue*tdtef^ cutd S&wcce
Printing • Typesetting
High Speed Copying • GBCA/elo Binding
Notary Public • Invitations
Laminating • Resumes
Business Cards • Labels
Full Color Copies^ •_ Rubber Stamps
1400 East Morehead Street
(1/2 block from Kings Drive by Carolines Medical)
Charlotte, NC 28204
(704) 375-8349 / FAX (704) 342-1066
Monday-Friday 8:30-5:30 Saturday 10:00
2:00
100 North Trade
(Corner of Trade & John Streets)
Downtown Matthews, NC
704/845-5722 or 704/845-1489
Specializing in fine authentic English Antiques
with select heirloom quality
American and European pieces, all at unbeatable prices.
Primitives • Antique Oriental Rugs
• Authentic English Pine • Victorian
chimney pots • Unusual Majolica pieces
• Irish and Welsh cupboards • Large
selection of chests-of-drawers • English
Early Arts & Crafts linen press
©Ibe
HUorlii
Antiques
Get An Additional
10% OFF
With Mention Of This Ad
100 North Trade
(Corner of Trade & John Streets)
Downtown Matthews, NC
704/845-5722 or 704/845-1489
Mention This Q-Notes Ad For An Additional 10% OFF
'We have our own in-house interior designer
TIME OUT!
620 8TH. AVE. N. • MYRTLE BEACH. S.C.
803-448-1180
CRUISE DANCE
OPEN DAILY AT 5 PM
PLAY POOL FOR KARAOJKE
COCKTAILS
afwmra TMi
Mar. 4
“Whatever” Show
Regular Drag, Camp Drag... Whateverl
Mar. 11
Freddy Burch — Country-Westem Singer
Mar. 18
Camp Drag
Mar. 25
Deja Vu
Male Strippers
HOHEST DANCE MUSIC ON THE BEACH WITH DJ. JOSE