Today was Holi, a religious spring festival celebrated by Hindus as a festival of colors and as a marker of spring.

We arrived in Goa, and driving to our yoga retreat, passed many a colorful local, their faces, clothes and bikes smeared with fluorescent colors. We settled into our gorgeous, serene surroundings for the next 7 days, a little disappointed to be removed from the pigmented mayhem. But then, I noticed speckles and splotches of vibrant colors on the stones along the walkways as we walked to reception, and I started to see technicolored yogis, with skin and clothing drenched in different hues.

Then, I was asked if I wanted “some color.” Sure, why not? Perhaps a dot of indigo here and there would bring out the blue in my eyes or connect me with a deeper energy.

It started with bright blue being smeared across my forehead, and bright green down my cheeks, then magenta on my forehead and rubbed into my scalp. As I moved, the color shook down onto my dress and up into my hair, and I realized resistance was futile. I began to take the color from my face and smear it on the cheeks of willing participants. We carried bags of hues and lavishly spread them on each other’s faces, heads and arms. (One fellow even got a pink hand print on his butt.)

Pretty soon, over a dozen of us were smeared with color, laughing, sprinkling and blending. The sun was setting, which necessitated a run through the sand and into the ocean to tone down our technicolored faces.

If my vibrant greeting is any indication of what my next week will be like, I think I have a pretty joyful adventure ahead… Detox and all!