I’ve seen a lot of gray lately. The sudden transformation from fall to the Binghamton tundra has made the sky pretty gray. I’ve bought a bunch of gray colored clothing as holiday presents. I’ve even started watching the simultaneously loved and hated “Grey’s Anatomy.” I listened to a David Gray song the other day. So maybe someone can explain to me why this color, the most ambiguous one out there, one which even defies proper spelling (is grey or gray a better choice?) seems to be permeating everything?

I don’t want to waste your time. If you don’t feel like reading yet another commentary on the terrifying world post-May, you should probably stop reading right about now. But if you’re as befuddled as I am, yet again, here is what I have to say.

It has been ingrained in most of us since birth to have a plan: to stick to the practical and make the “not dumb” decision. At this point in time, that could mean anything from taking the job offer to ending that relationship. Or, for that matter, never letting that not so easy relationship really happen. Don’t complicate your life. Take the road more traveled.

What to do with yourself a few months from now is a gray area when the world is demanding you see in black and white. But I think people are misinterpreting exactly what a gray area means. A gray area shouldn’t be a bad thing. It shouldn’t mean ambiguity or indecisiveness, but testing the waters. And a gray area should not be used as an excuse to sit back and watch the things you really want slip away because you’re scared to do something different.

I’m never 100 percent sure about most things. But if you wait until you know for sure, then the best parts of the gray area are going to pass you by. Instead of fixating on a high paying job and that “all or nothing” relationship, go with the flow. Do something creative with your career path while you still have the chance. Instead of pushing someone away, let that not so good idea have a chance. Use the gray area to take risks, not to hide from them. Yes, your business might tank. Your job might fall apart. You might get hurt and even be vulnerable. And this all could take a week, a month or years.

But just think of the possibilities!

Gray should equal adventure. But adventure means opening yourself up to new ideas and new stages, not avoiding them or tiptoeing around what you really want to do with yourself. It is not about passing on making a choice, but about opening a window to let your choices change.

Gray equals risk. Before the statistics, parents and city become too tempting of a comfort zone, let yourself take a chance on whatever it is you really want (or in true gray fashion, what you might want in that moment or, deep breathe, a little scared of wanting). Even if you need to revise that decision in May, or whenever it is you finally leave Binghamton, please don’t be scared. A little color never hurt anyone.

Nora Slonimsky is a junior English and histor major. The copy desk chief would like to note that “gray” is in fact the correct spelling.