Green, green grass

Kermit may have been on to something when he sang about how it’s not easy being green. Finding green is easy enough.

(Grass on the hill. 2006)

(A green day on the Brandywine. 2007)

Deciding which photos to use and trying to come up with a selection that isn’t all plant life is not. Green’s loveliness brightens up and shows up in almost all of my photos.

(The “green can.” 2007)

Green to me is nature, the earth, and life. It is growth, renewal, springtime, and a color representative of the environment. It’s a color that has been co-opted by environmentally friendly groups and products. Kermit was right about some of that. It’s not always easy being green in a throw-away culture.

Green is abundant, and maybe it is abundance as well as seen in the green of crops, meadows, forests, and orchards.

(In the labyrinth at the Tyler Arboretum. July 2007)

Green is the color of some of my favorite foods including green beans, zucchini, spinach, lettuces, and well, greens of all sorts (collards, swiss chard, etc.).

(Dinner ingredients. 2007)

(Greens in the garden at night. 2007)

It’s also the color of my favorite tea.

Green is everywhere, from the countryside to the ‘burbs to the cities.

(New York City. 2007)

(Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. 2007)

(Shades of green by the Golden Gate Bridge. San Francisco, California. 2006)

(Marietta, Ohio. 2006)

Green is the color of street signs here in the U.S.

(New York City. 2007)

And highway signs.

(On I-80. 2007)

Green is the color of money and the symbol of money in the U.S.

(The Happy Piggy bank. 2007)

Green is an inexperienced person (“greenhorn”) or a person who is great at gardening (said to have a “green thumb”). Green is the color of the Emerald City in Oz. And the Wicked Witch of the West.

(Mummer. 2006)

Green is described as having both a warming and a cooling effect, denoting balance, harmony, and stability.

(Peace lantern. San Francisco. 2006)

It is said to bring good luck, tranquility, and good health. Green is also the color of jealousy (the green eyed monster).

(Praying mantis in the jewelweed. 2006)

(Sign in West Chester. 2007)

Green is the national color of Ireland and always prominently displayed (in the U.S. at least) on St. Patrick’s Day.

(A leprechaun in Ocean City, Maryland. 2007)

Green has long been associated with fertility and was a popular color for wedding gowns in the 15th century.

(Mummer in his green gown. 2007)

There are plenty of green animals.

(Green frog. 2006)

(Green bird at the National Aviary. 2006 Note: Color not altered. The bird really is this glowing shade of neon green.)

(Parrot. National Aviary. 2006)

And animals living on the green of nature (including humans, of course).

(Point Reyes, CA. 2006)

Green is the color of the heart chakra which harbors the energy of love and the feelings that make us one with our fellow humans. It is said to calm and soothe, to release tension, and bring peace and harmony.

(Somewhere in Marin County, CA. 2006)

(Muir Woods. 2006)

(Drive-by greens. 2007)

To prefer green is to be educated, reputable and civilized. It makes you less likely to pioneer or originate than to do the popular thing, and if reds are extroverts and blues introspective, greens have more balance. You would make the best teachers and, if there were more like you, the dreams of the reformers and philosophers might come true.

~ Faber Birren

All photos by Robin.