The Color of My Wind
Ana María González Paniagua
She/HerEditorial Team Member
Recently, I tried the Aldo & Barbie Collab pink platform shoes. For those who have not seen them, they are these beautiful chunky heels that have a pink silk fabric, a beaded heart in the center, sparkly pink glitter bottom, and an essence of what Barbie is: girly and simply beautiful. While I did not buy them, I reacted with pure joy and excitement. I was brought back into my inner child, a pink-loving princess. I love that part of myself. The part that gets excited for the little things.
Color, especially pink, has been an incredible way to express myself, even when I was young. Pink gave me an outlet to see myself as a princess, something I longed for. In my heart, I wanted to feel as beautiful inside and out as a princess. I wanted Belle’s brave heart. Cinderella’s faith. Ariel’s determination. Snow White’s sweetness. Mulan’s selflessness. Aurora’s loyalty. Pocahontas’s noble heart. And so on. While they each have a color of their own, my inner princess color was bright, bold pink.
Now, pink in all its forms is a comfort color because it brings me back to that little girl who sought (and seeks) good qualities in others and herself. Just like princesses, pink is a reminder that who I am goes beyond a title, an expectation, or anything that may define me. The shades and tints of pink don’t matter because pink is still pink, a simply beautiful memory of my past. Those hues show my complexity, my layers of everything that makes me, me. Bright pink is my energetic nature. Light pink is what I see as my kind nature. Somber pink shows my imperfection, my humanity. Weaved into me are these versions of pink, bringing out the best parts of who I am and can be, showing me I can always learn to change as I grow, as a different shade is needed to tackle a new challenge.
For many, pink may just be a color. But for me, pink embodies the chapters of life that I have experienced through the years. I see pink in flamingos, cherry blossoms, ballet shoes, Aldo & Barbie Collab platform heels. Most of all, I see pink in my childhood, my strengths and flaws. All, in the end, are beautiful things.