Of Purple Rooms and Promises

I want my room to be purple again
It’s the cry of every two year old boy
At 9:45 at night
A few days after his room
The one he took from his parents
Ceased to be decorated in shades of purple
Meant originally to be a backdrop for
Miniature Zen gardens
Bubbling fountains
Large O’Keefe flower prints and
Bamboo shades
A reality that never completely materialized or
Dissipated
Until last week
When the primer went on
Followed by the beautiful blue
That’s what it was called
Beautiful blue
And beautiful and
Fresh and
Smelly it was and
Still is
Even tonight
In the dark
When
More than an hour after being put into bed
My son lies in his bed
Screaming for the dark
Dirty
Purple to
Return and
I
Sitting in my little orange bedroom
Originally supposed to be the office
Hear him
Loud and clear