Before Midnight is a color that sits right in between.
​
It’s not quite navy.
It’s not quite royal blue.
It lives in that moment right before the sky turns fully dark — when everything is still visible, but softer… deeper… quieter.
​
Blue has always meant something to me, but in different ways.
​
My grandmother’s favorite color was royal blue.
If I had to choose for myself, I would say navy.
And somehow, Before Midnight became the place where both of those could exist at the same time.
Growing up, every Sunday was church. We went to St. Stephen — second pew, every time. And the cushions weren’t just blue… they were the exact shade of Before Midnight. That in-between tone that didn’t feel too bright and didn’t feel too dark. Just right. Just settled.
That’s one of those memories that never left me.
Not just the color — but how it felt to sit next to her. The stillness of it. The routine of it. The way certain things didn’t change, even when everything else in life did.
And when I think about her, I don’t just think about one moment. I think about all the spaces she filled.
Her home.
The carpet.
The walls.
The way blue lived in every corner of her world.
It wasn’t loud. It wasn’t trying to impress anyone. It was just… there. Consistent. Comforting. Familiar.
Even down to the cars she drove at one point — blue showing up again, like it always did.
And now, when I look at Before Midnight, I don’t just see a shade.
I see her.
I see the way she carried herself.
I see the way her presence felt.
I see the quiet strength in the things that didn’t need to be explained.
Before Midnight became more than a color.
It became a memory I could wear.
That’s why I couldn’t just name it after her.
Because this wasn’t about labeling her… it was about holding onto a feeling. A moment. A presence that still exists in pieces of my life, even now.
Before Midnight is that space between what was and what still is.
Between what she loved and what I’ve come to love for myself.
It’s the moment right before everything settles into the night…
when the sky is full, and deep, and steady.
And when I see it on the lips…
I don’t just see a color.
I see her sitting right next to me.
BEFORE MIDNIGHT
