There’s nothing quite like opening up that yellow and green Crayola lid to get lost in the familiar smell of a new box of crayons.

I don’t do it as much as when I was a little boy, but it does bring back memories. My first creative masterpieces kept me entertained, whether drawing stick figures of my mama, usually with both arms on one side of her body standing in a bucket of water because I couldn’t draw feet, or coloring with my Aunt Laverne. I passed the time coloring almost everywhere: on the church pews beside my daddy, with Tracey Annette on her Mawmaw’s front porch, or under the shade of giant trees. Mama was, of course, my favorite coloring partner.

We would sit side-by-side using every color of the rainbow and then some, or in our case a box of 64 crayons, and we got lost in the pages. Of course, she would take breaks to stir a pot of beans on the stove or take a phone call from one of her sisters, but nonetheless we made that yellow Formica bar in the kitchen our art studio. I was a master colorist, always outlining Mickey’s bowtie first before filling in the blank spaces with a painstakingly selected array, always sharpened, never dull.

I loved markers, crayons, and watercolor paints, and at age 10, the world I lived in revolved around my Crayola caddy that housed everything a boy required to rival the likes of Rembrandt or Picasso. I was my own best critic, obviously.

Imagine my delight now at age 44 with the revival of coloring books for adults. The books come in grown-up designs that are a bit more sophisticated than my Mickey Mouse ones from yesteryear. One of my friends in Santa Fe just colored her way through the pages of her Game of Thrones coloring book while I recently gifted my best friend with a coloring book with patterns designed around old gospel hymns. Apparently, the adult coloring books help relieve stress, too, and I am all in favor of that. Whether you love gardening, the seaside, birds, or popular culture, you can find an adult coloring book just right for you.

As I progress through the hours of a busy day, I can’t wait for my renewed ritual of taking out my colored pencils and coloring books, flipping on my bedside lamp, getting lost in old memories, and perhaps making a few new ones.

David Creel is a Vicksburg resident and writes a syndicated column. You may contact him at beautifulwithdavid@gmail.com.