There are many colours in the world,
Yet the ones that filled his paint-box were shades of grey and white.
The varying depths of truth were enough to make anyone's hair curl,
Yet no one discovered it at first sight.

There was no individuality,
No shades of green, pink or yellow.
The paint community had no democracy,
And everything seemed so easy and shallow.

But in the gloomy clouds of December,
Greyness whirled into colours.
All the new things the painter had to remember!
But not all of them are flawless.

There were colours of black, red and grey,
Yet on other days there were white, pink and shades of whey.
The colours kept on adding and multiplying,
And with the colours came more truth, attention and trying.

Then one day there came the darkest black,
And the painter realised that he could never turn back.
He had to salvage his colours,
To prevent them from turning back to grey.

There were too many colours in his paint-box now,
And he couldn't possibly take them all.
What he COULD take with him, though, was the smallest tube of paint,
Yet the brightest of them all.

Stowing the tube of paint into his pocket,
He could barely concentrate,
For on his journey to Elsewhere,
There were too many things to contemplate.

Yet when the artist reached Elsewhere,
It was pleasure and happiness beyond measure,
For he had finally arrived at and found
An artist's greatest treasure.

The artist in the poem refers to Jonas, and the paint-box is the community he lives in. He is depicted as an artist in this poem as he is the only person who associates himself with colours in the community, other than the Giver. In this case, the word "colours" not only refer to colours like red, yellow and pink, but also truths and memories. Just like the varying shades of paint, truth, sadness and pain have different levels to them.
In the first stanza, Jonas is still unaware of the truths and mysteries of other worldly matters and things like music and love.
In Stanza Three, however, he recieves his Assignment in December, along with the truths and memories of the past.
Some memories are dark and painful, like the war-scene and starvation, yet others like the memory of love, the sailboat and snow are enjoyable, pleasant and warming to the heart. Therefore, the colours black, red and grey represent the painful memories that Jonas had to receive, while the bright, cheery colours represent the happy, beautiful ones that Jonas received as well.
Jonas then realised the truth about Release and went to Elsewhere, but he brought Gabe with him. Gabe is represented by the "smallest tube of paint, yet the brightest of all."
Gabe is represented by the smallest tube of paint not only because he is just an infant and regarded with the least ranking and power in the community, but also because he has the power of foresight, due to his pale eyes.
This poem was written in reference to the Giver, and I hope my readers enjoy it! :)

There are many colours in the world,
Yet the ones that filled his paint-box were shades of grey and white.
The varying depths of truth were enough to make anyone's hair curl,
Yet no one discovered it at first sight.

There was no individuality,
No shades of green, pink or yellow.
The paint community had no democracy,
And everything seemed so easy and shallow.

But in the gloomy clouds of December,
Greyness whirled into colours.
All the new things the painter had to remember!
But not all of them are flawless.

There were colours of black, red and grey,
Yet on other days there were white, pink and shades of whey.
The colours kept on adding and multiplying,
And with the colours came more truth, attention and trying.

Then one day there came the darkest black,
And the painter realised that he could never turn back.
He had to salvage his colours,
To prevent them from turning back to grey.

There were too many colours in his paint-box now,
And he couldn't possibly take them all.
What he COULD take with him, though, was the smallest tube of paint,
Yet the brightest of them all.

Stowing the tube of paint into his pocket,
He could barely concentrate,
For on his journey to Elsewhere,
There were too many things to contemplate.

Yet when the artist reached Elsewhere,
It was pleasure and happiness beyond measure,
For he had finally arrived at and found
An artist's greatest treasure.

The artist in the poem refers to Jonas, and the paint-box is the community he lives in. He is depicted as an artist in this poem as he is the only person who associates himself with colours in the community, other than the Giver. In this case, the word "colours" not only refer to colours like red, yellow and pink, but also truths and memories. Just like the varying shades of paint, truth, sadness and pain have different levels to them.
In the first stanza, Jonas is still unaware of the truths and mysteries of other worldly matters and things like music and love.
In Stanza Three, however, he recieves his Assignment in December, along with the truths and memories of the past.
Some memories are dark and painful, like the war-scene and starvation, yet others like the memory of love, the sailboat and snow are enjoyable, pleasant and warming to the heart. Therefore, the colours black, red and grey represent the painful memories that Jonas had to receive, while the bright, cheery colours represent the happy, beautiful ones that Jonas received as well.
Jonas then realised the truth about Release and went to Elsewhere, but he brought Gabe with him. Gabe is represented by the "smallest tube of paint, yet the brightest of all."
Gabe is represented by the smallest tube of paint not only because he is just an infant and regarded with the least ranking and power in the community, but also because he has the power of foresight, due to his pale eyes.
This poem was written in reference to the Giver, and I hope my readers enjoy it! :)