According to Pantone, which provides color standards to design industries, the public is expected to embrace many shades of the optimistic color as people look to the future for positive change. We can expect to see shades of yellow on clothing, accessories, home furnishings and more in the coming months.

Yellow has always been one of my favorite colors. My bat mitzvah invitations were yellow and orange, because even at age thirteen, I was already drawn to the happy colors of sunshine and warmth.

But what I see when I look at the “mimosa” color swatch now is not just the “most wonderful symbolic color of the future,” as quoted by Leatrice Eiseman, executive director of the Pantone Color Institute.

I see my Mom’s carpet and appliances. I see a color similar to one that was ubiquitous in any home of the ’70s, along with burnt orange and olive green! I look at that swatch, and I’m transported back across 3.5 decades and seven states to the home of my youth.

While prompting us to “look forward with optimism” is certainly one effect the 2009 “mimosa” color will have on our collective psyches, it may not be solely due to the color’s inherent warm and cheery nature. I suspect the subconscious conjuring of happy memories as we gaze upon a familiar shade from years past will contribute as well.

So here’s to embracing shades of golden yellow as we begin a new era while reflecting back on days gone by. I am hopeful that we’ll all have a truly happy, sunny, and optimistic 2009.