I remember the joy that a new box of crayons would bring when I was young. The snazzy yellow box with the signature green stripes on the sides always took my breath away. The sight of all 64 colors in perfect order was like a magical glimpse of the rainbow made real in my hands.

Burnt sienna, sandalwood, magenta and salmon; they were words I’d heard but these crayons were my first exposure to the real thing. To this day I can see in my mind’s eye the lower case black lettering on the side of the crayons with that newly learned shade.

Today, many, many years later, there are new colors; purple mountains majesty, macaroni and cheese and fuzzy wuzzy brown; very descriptive and tactile. I’m sure they were chosen to help their newest consumers learn the shades of the rainbow.

Now if you’ll excuse me; I’m feeling the need to go get a box and right now and create something. I hear they sell boxes with 120 different shades…