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Dawn's NotesRaindrops and Rainbows Have you ever wondered what it takes to make a rainbow? You probably already know that rainbows are made of water and light, usually raindrops and sunlight. The composition of a rainbow can be shown in a fairly complicated diagram. But according to the National Weather Service website, here is how a rainbow is made: "As light enters the raindrop, it is refracted. . . and some of the light is reflected by the internal, curved, mirror-like surface of the raindrop, and finally is refracted back out the raindrop toward the observer." Wow, what a mouthful! Rainbows have been a part of this earth for a long, long time. In Irish mythology the rainbow is associated with leprechauns—short, mischievous, little old men with red hair and beards, green clothes, and shoes with buckles. Leprechauns supposedly have a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. Rainbows are a part of many religions, but many of the Christian faith believe that God put the rainbow in the sky as a promise to never destroy the world again by a flood. Rainbows have also been subject matter for artists, photographers, and poets. Rainbows may create feelings of excitement for the beholders! In 1802 Wordsworth wrote a poem entitled "My Heart Leaps When I Behold the Rainbow." His poem reads: "My heart leaps up when I behold One man by the name of Fred Stern is renowned for his ability to create natural rainbows in the sky. In 2007 Mr. Stern created rainbows over the Willamette River at a festival in Portland, Oregon. He created his rainbow for the Portland food bank, "because no one should be hungry." He makes his artificial rainbows for humanitarian reasons and also teaches children how to make rainbows. No matter how an artist or photographer may try, all the brilliance of the rainbow cannot be captured on canvas or paper. As science has shown, it takes water and light to make a rainbow. But for a rainbow to be appreciated, it takes more than water and light. It takes one with sight—eyes that can see the rainbow—a person must look for the rainbow! "But what do rainbows have to do with our lives?" you may ask. Remember the song, "Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head?" Storms come, and raindrops fall-in nature and If you have lost a loved one through death, the storms and heavy rains may be raging all around you. You may wonder if anything good will ever come from the loss of your loved one. When your heart is hurting so badly, it may be hard to find anything good in life at all. "Where is the sunshine? I want the sun to shine for a change," you may say. But, think about it—"Too much sunshine makes a desert!" "But too much rain can drown you," you may argue. True, but without the rain, a desert will never bloom! Perhaps it is when we go through the "bad stuff," "the rain," we learn to sink our roots a bit deeper into life, and learn what really matters. Sometimes it is through the "rough stuff" that we blossom and grow! Where is the sunshine? It is there, always there, but it may be concealed behind a cloud. When the rain changes from a torrent to a gentle shower, when the sun comes out from behind the cloud, look up, you just might see a rainbow!Call about the next "Living Life after Loss" Group at: Dawn Phelps, RN/LMSW, Group Facilitator |
