Okay, What's the Color of this Damn Dress?

“I see gold and white,” I tell my son Patrick.  He draws back in shock.

“It’s black and blue,” he retorts, eyes squinting suspiciously.

We squabble on about this latest phenomenon dividing the internet.  Several camps have emerged – those who see the dress white and gold, those who see black and blue, and those who see variations of either.  The scientific lesson is how eyes perceive color differently depending on biology. 

Still, Patrick and I can’t understand how the other can be so color-blind, so stubborn, so unseeing of what’s clearly in front of them.  Then I’m shown three versions of the dress side-by-side and I see my own plus two others including the black and blue.   

I feel humbled and later, Dress-gate bugs me.  What else am I not seeing?  What else am I getting wrong or missing? 

I can't  help wonder, is reality subjective?  Can we not always trust our eyes?  And maybe our perceptions aren’t off as much as just different from each other.  Maybe none of us see the big picture, only what our biology's wired to see. 

And is there a lesson here for world peace, more advanced communication, or at the very least, better fashion styling? 

Oh well, I sniff when I find out the actual dress is closer to black and blue.  If I was in a store I’d still pick the gold and white.  It’s prettier.  Even if it doesn’t exist.

What color do you see?  Comments are always welcome and if you’d like to receive posts hot off the press, just fill in your email address below.  Thank you!