Symbolism

Hi Everybody,

Again, my favorite movie is "Stranger Than Fiction" and "that all these things, the nuances, the anomalies, the subtleties, which we assume only accessorize our days, are effective for a much larger and nobler cause. They are here to save our lives."

The part "...save our lives" can have a myriad of different meanings, but I like to think of it as a way to tell me something or point me in the correct direction - I did decided to accept the internship to India for several reasons: to learn more about my field of study (health policy, health economics, population health), to travel, and for personal reasons.

Well, onto the symbolism in my life. Today, I went to T. Nagar shopping for a Backpacker's backpack. I did buy one for about 50 dollars Canadian at the Witco store and it's of "Questionable" quality, let's hope it stays together for at least 4 weeks. I slowly made my way back to campus and placed the backpack with the pile of other backpacks/bags that i have accumulated. I currently have 3 backpacks/bags: 1) a BLACK Wegner laptop backpack (however the Wegner symbol is a RED cross) 2) a RED North Face Messenger Bag that i use for daily use (going out of campus, walking around campus to carry umbrella, water bottles etc. and now my new additional backpack (I have been accumulating lots of CRAP) 3) a RED Fantasy Backpacker's backpack. I also noticed that every morning (like clockwork) i go to the local cafeteria to purchase a RED labeled 1 liter water bottle. I also have RED bracelet still around my right wrist from the Diwali Puja.

This post could either be due to the fact that 1) i have WAAAY to much time and i possibly need to get a life or 2) the belief that life CANNOT be a serious of meaningless accidents and coincidences, or is life a tapestry of events that culminate in a exquisite and marvelous plan. It could quite possibly the former, and it's true that i have way too much time on my hands. But we cannot disprove the latter, scientifically. We can choose not to believe, but I think in some ways, people believe that some proportion of their lives is uncontrollable and unchangeable.

So, as i realized this and after i have read my online daily Globe and Mail Newspaper from Edmonton and made an effort to get some work done. I proceeded to investigate the symbolism or meaning behind the 2 colors, red and black.

This is what i have found.

From the website: (www.three-musketeers.net/mike/colors.html)

Red
"Red can symbolize many things; from blood, to love, to infatuation. Basically red symbolizes strong emotions, or things of strong emotions rather than intellectual ideas. For example, red can symbolize excitement, energy, speed, strength, danger, passion, and aggression.

According to Henry Dreyfus, it is popularly felt that red, the color of blood and fire, represents life and vitality. Red also signifies the color of the sun: a symbol of energy, radiating its vitalizing life-force into human beings. Red is also looked upon as a sensual color, and can be associated with man's most profound urges and impulses."
Hmm.... quite interesting.

Now onto the color black

Black
"Black is the color of the night, and of "evil." Black can also be a color of elegance or class (such as a black-tie only event, and black evening gowns.) Black can also represent ideas such as power, sexuality, sophistication, formality, wealth, mystery, fear, evil, unhappiness, depth, style, sadness, remorse, anger, and mourning. Black can also represent a lack of color, the primordial void, emptiness. It can also mean sorrow or mourning, in the Christian tradition of wearing black to funerals.
According to Henry Dreyfus, Black, sumi, is the color of mystery and solemnity; the color of the night. Black expresses the depths of the unknown, and encourages the imagination of a different world from that of daylight realities. Used by itself, black can represent bad luck or misfortune."

Red representing life, vitality, and strong emotions (passion) and black representing the color of mystery and solemnity or the depths of the unknown.

Hmm.... Interesting... Black and Red... Red and Black.

"You know the Greeks didn't write obituaries. They only ask one question after a man died: "Did he have passion?" ~Dean from Serendipity~

Back to work!

Cheers

Robin