Writing Exercise
While thinking of the prime colors (red, yellow, and blue), have a character describe each to a blind person.
Side Note
I will be using scout for this exercise. And I am not going to lie, this one was difficult, but I do love a challenge and I hope I did a good job.
My Story
Scout sat outside of her favorite café, waiting for her friend Kirk to join her. She hadn’t seen Kirk since they were kids and she couldn’t wait to see him.
Her phone rang and she grabbed it. “Hello?”
“There you are,” Kirk’s voice said in her ear as well as behind her.
Scout jumped out of her chair and saw a tall, spiked brown haired teen. She laughed and pulled Kirk close, hugging him tight.
Kirk laughed and hugged Scout before she helped him sit down. Kirk collapsed his walking stick, sat it on the table, and cocked his head to the side. He removed his sunglasses and stared with his almost white eyes in Scout’s general direction.
“Scout, I have missed hearing your voice,” Kirk said.
Scout grinned at her friend. “It has been a few years, hasn’t it?”
Kirk leaned forward against his knees. “Do you remember when were kids and I asked you to describe red, yellow, and blue to me?”
Scout groaned and covered her head, shaking it. “Why did you have to bring that up?”
Kirk laughed at her friend’s unease and embarrassment. “You said that yellow was bright, red was hot, and blue was pretty.”
“Hey, I was like five years old. You can’t hold that against me.”
Kirk smiled and reached out his hand. He patted the table top until he felt Scout’s elbow. He squeezed her elbow and grabbed her arm, pulling her arm down until he could get a firm hold of her hand. “I don’t hold it against you. But I am still waiting for someone to explain those colors to me.” Kirk cocked his head to the side and raised an eyebrow. “Do you want to try again?”
Scout groaned as she thought about how she could describe the colors to her childhood friend who had never seen anything before in his life. She raised her head and looked into his eyes and nodded.
“I guess I can try again.” Scout cleared her throat and thought about the color yellow. She closed her eyes and pictured the yellow sun, yellow bananas, yellow flowers, and yellow fluffy baby chicks. “I’ll start with yellow. It’s bright, warm, and exotic. Yellow sings to your soul like pleasing jazz as you smell the sweet scent of daffodils. Yellow makes you heart beat nice and slow as you feel the warmth of the sun on your face. Yellow is like a hug from a long lost friend.”
Scout then thought of the color red, and she thought of red roses, red flames from a campfire, and of red birds flying free in the sky. “Red is hot, passionate, and complex. Red screams on top of its lungs and fights for love. Red makes your heart pound fast like a horse raising across the warm beach. Red is like fast salsa music that makes your soul pound with each beat, shaking you to the core. Red is like a fiery kiss and smells like roses and spices.”
Kirk smiled as he listened to Scout explain red and yellow to him. He leaned back against his chair as he waited for Scout to describe blue to him.
Scout opened her eyes and stared up at the blue sky as she wondered how she would describe blue to Kirk. She thought about blue water, the blue sky, blue crystals, and blue larkspur. “Blue is pretty, cool, and satisfying. Blue whispers to your soul and sets your mind a blaze with satisfaction like that first step into the snow or that first date with your crush. It rallies behind you when you are ready to ask someone out or give a speech in your class. Blue never lets you down and is like your best friend. Blue heals a broken heart and cradles you when you cry yourself to sleep after that painful break up or when you lose someone close. It smells like fresh rain and salt.”
Kirk raised his eyebrows and clapped, bring Scout out of her trance and back into reality. She looked at Kirk and shrugged even though she knew he couldn’t see her do it.
“I tried,” Scout said and took a sip of her hot chocolate.
“Your descriptions are the best I have heard yet, Scout. I could smell and see the colors by the way you described them.” Kirk clapped and said, “Well done.”
Scout lowered her head as she smiled and blushed at the complements. “Glad I did better than when I was five.”
They laughed and talked, catching up on life. They ate lunch at the café and spent most of the day together. When it was time for them to part way, Scout gave him a tight hug and said her good bye. Kirk thanked her for an amazing day and with the help of his ears and cane, he made his way back to where he was staying with his family for the summer.
The two promised to meet up again for another day of chatting, eating, and this time hanging out with Jennifer and Katlyn.