These are the colors of my soul.

They’re also the colors of most of my laundry. And my bedroom wall. And obviously, my book cover.

I’ve always found myself attracted to purples and blues. They’re peaceful, refreshing, and easy to be around. In a way, I feel like they represent me.

I used to think that only one color range could do that. But recently I’ve become fascinated with the color orange.

My writer friend Angela Wallace has been a fan of orange at least since we started writing stories together as teenagers. Even some of her book covers are orange.

The orange memo has only recently reached me. But now I see it as representing fearlessness, power, energy, and fun.

Maybe I’m attracted to the color now because I want to be more of these things. Maybe it’s because I’m already becoming them. And I haven’t stopped liking blue/purple or repainted my bedroom wall. But in 2014, orange has become my other favorite color.

Like for toenail polish.

And for my new indoor cactus garden.

When Angela and I got together for a photo shoot, I even wore some orange in my scarf.

After all, blue and orange are complementary colors.

Maybe a person can be more than one color–can be peaceful yet also fearless; can be easy to be around yet also powerful. We humans are multifaceted, with each facet constantly in a state of change–growing, shrinking, morphing. That’s a fact of being of being alive (and of staying out of ruts).

Maybe that’s also why we need friends who are multiple colors, to help stretch us and balance us out.

So hello, orange. It’s nice to meet you.