I sat my sister on my knee
and she began to sing to me.
“Emma dear,” she sweetly said,
“Are you fond of the color red?”

“Julia,” I replied, plenty confused,
“Of all the things to say, you choose
something that makes zero sense—
You must be utterly and totally dense!”

“Well, are you?” She wanted to know,
So I answered her, “I suppose so.
But purple’s pretty and green’s better—
it’s the color of my favorite sweater.”

She took a minute to think this through,
then said, “You know what you should really do?
You’re mellow and fond of quiet hues,
it would do you some good to choose

a brighter color to wear tomorrow
Something to put behind your sorrow—”
In a teasing voice, she finally said,
“Tomorrow I dare you to wear red.”

I decided to take little Ju’s advice—
maybe a little red would be nice!
The next day, what a sight was I,
I kissed my fear and shyness goodbye.

I wore some of the brightest hue
And gave Ju credit where credit was due.
She helped me overcome my fear
and so I wrote her this poem here.