Blogtrek

Rainbows

On the way back from Rochester to Richmond on Aug 24, a thunderstorm passed us and went to the east. It was there in the east when the sun set in the west. This to me means Rainbow Warning. I looked all over the place for rainbows and found it as we were heading down I-95 south of Richmond. It got brighter as time went on, and produced some impressive scenes over the already futuristic appearance of the bridges of Va 895 over the James River. I took some pictures but they did not turn out well. I did get a good picture of the rainbow near a grocery store.

What do rainbows mean, anyway? The traditional Biblical story says that it is God's forgiveness after the 40-day flood that killed the rest of creation. I suspect this story had its origin in a huge flood sometime around 3000-5000 years ago. A collection of people rode out the storm and thanked the powers that be that they had no control over that they were finally safe. Of course with the sun shining and the storm still around, a rainbow would have shone; hence the symbolism. There is also the Wizard of Oz interpretation, that is, that birds could fly over it but I can't. And there is the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow; getting a lot of money is just as elusive as chasing down the end of the rainbow - if you try to find it, it moves further on.

The scientific explanation is that the setting sun shines on raindrops of a storm on the the other side of the sky. These raindrops refract the sun's rays much as a glass prism does, and splits the light into individual colors by wavelength. This means in order for a rainbow to form, both sunny skies and stormy weather must prevail. The rainbow separates the yin and yang of the weather; indeed, one side of the rainbow will be brighter than the other side. So to me rainbows represent a transition. It would be a good symbol for weddings, coming-of-age ceremonies, retirement parties, and so forth.