Rainbows are grief portals. Submitted photo

My son sent me a gorgeous photo of a rainbow arcing over the streets of Cambridge. It was taken at dusk, just as people needed their car’s headlights and taillights. A thunder and lightning storm had preceded the layered artistry, followed by a rainstorm. The rainbow appeared as if by magic, with a blue sky on the horizon with a dome of clouds as a background for this miracle.

Why did God create rainbows? Of course, the most straightforward answer would be that God loved showing off colors and beautiful creativity. However, as I pointed out last week through Emerson’s observation, the interpretation of nature is best left up to the individual. With that in mind, as I fell asleep one night, I was nudged with other reasons.

In 1988, one afternoon in his garden, my father-in-law passed away. He enjoyed gardening, so I can’t think of a more appropriate place. The afternoon before, we hosted a backyard family gathering. We had the video recorder out, filming the antics and activities of everyone. We witnessed and recorded a beautiful rainbow across the sky behind our home just as the party ended. After my father-in-law passed, it seemed fitting that we never added anything more to that video recording.

Rainbows are symbols of hope as they arc layers of colors across the sky after a storm. Invisible rainbows shine through our tears in the process of grieving. They are our invitation to alchemize through art and other creative works as we move through grief and the grieving process and come back to life. It is not something we want to do, but something our hearts know must be done, transforming our grief into something else layer by layer, not unlike the colors of a rainbow.

Rainbows are grief portals.

NASA has a definition for portals that refers to spaces in the universe where we go from here to there and arrive closer to the sun. I like the feel of this when I think of rainbows as grief portals. The space from here to there to the sun provides a home for our grief. It holds, comforts, and hugs it while it is healing. It is here where we can meet up with the spirit of those who have passed, and when we are further along our grief-healing journey and return home, their spirit stays with us.

Rainbows, in all their magnificence, no matter if they are brilliantly hued or shining passively, cause us to stop our conversations, car, or whatever we are doing if we can, to gawk in wonderment. Many times, we snap a photo. We share the experience through stories, poetry, art, and pictures.

Rainbows instill and awaken our highest energy, and in turn, we are drawn to share that energy with anyone who will listen, even when no one is listening, just to put the memory out into the universe. In that sharing, we awaken and strengthen a higher energy, an enlightened consciousness; we have a closer connection to the Creator.