NATURE’S JEWELS
Without Rain There Can Be No Rainbows
The rainbows in my life
“It takes billions of raindrops to form a rainbow, and the work of each drop lasts only a fraction of a second, for while the bow hangs in the sky, the drops themselves are falling… a perfect example of collective action in nature.” Weather — By T. HOKE
Rain pelts my face, and gusty winds pull at my rain jacket’s hood. The river flows around my legs, and I cast again and again, leaning into the wind. This is fishing weather; I’m guaranteed not to catch anything if I stay at home whining about the rain, so here I am.
I notice the clouds thinning to the West and a bright spot where the sun is, and I sigh. There will be a rainbow. The fast-moving squall moves on, the tops of the trees start to glow and shimmer, and just as I predicted, a rainbow arcs over the river. First, it’s faint and a single rainbow, then the sun bursts through the clouds, creating a double. I admire the rainbows until a cloudbank cuts off the sun, and it disappears.
If there was a perfect teacher of the brevity of beauty and a reminder to slow down for a moment — it’s a rainbow.
