Rainbows have always held a particular fascination for me.
Some 15 years ago on a grey wet Sunday, home alone with 2 little girls, bored and feeling isolated and uncertain about the future, I decided to pack them into the car, adorned with wellie boots, umbrellas and coats and go to The Falkirk Wheel.
I have no idea why I chose that particular destination, perhaps it had been a school project for L or T, or an item on the news. What I do know was that it was a great decision for all sorts of reasons – largely personal but also as a bonding for us 3!
I am very aware that I can become impatient and rush at things, anxious to move on to the next item on my ‘to do’ list, but on this occasion I decided to go with the flow and try to see things through my daughters’ eyes.
The car park was quiet – no wonder as the sky was still a dark foreboding grey. We wondered over to the visitor centre and booked our seats for the boat. We had half an hour or so to go and so read the information boards about the stages of construction, had a drink and dutifully queued to board when we were called.
The trip was fascinating not least having a momentary sense of flying as the boat is raised up through the stages to the higher level canal. The boat cruised up the canal, the rain easing a bit, stopped and then went back to where we’d started.
As we disembarked and walked back to the car, the clouds parted and a ray of light split through the artillery grey.
A rainbow formed and we stopped still to look. I can still see it today – the colours were so vivid and such a perfect arc had formed. By the time out eyes had adjusted, we realised that the end of the rainbow was barely a metre in front of us. It appeared as if the pot of gold was to be found under a puddle.
We were all 3 of us spellbound.
On the journey back to Dollar a massive ray of light split the cloud heralding a heavenly intervention – as if just for me – as I made the decision to work through the depression that had kept me in chains for far too long.
Every rainbow for me is a reminder that after the rain some sun will come.
Rainbows – a poem
reflecting and refracting light rays through rain
sweeping and arcing blue, yellow and green
red, violet, orange across the spectrum
watching and waiting to see rainbow again
a start and an ending across the divide
breathing and knowing the pain will subside
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