Hurrying home in the rain from the local playground with a complaining two year old, all I could think of was a warm haven from the storm. Rushing along head down through the rain, I was oblivious of the patch of sunlight that broke momentarily through the clouds, creating a beautiful rainbow across a wintry sky. The little girl at my side suddenly stopped in her tracks, electrified by the experience of nature's beauty — the first rainbow she had seen in this life. As we stood there soaking wet watching in wonder as the rainbow dissolved from view, I realized how rarely it is that we see the beauty in everyday life as a child can.
Most of us hurry along through the stormy responsibilities of adulthood gradually losing touch with a child's awareness of the wonder of the hour and the minute. The loneliness and boredom which plague modern society indicate a community in which many people disregard the opportunities each precious day provides to learn and grow. With each morning, let us resolve to see a "rainbow" in all our tasks and duties no matter how humble. The present moment is the only opportunity we will have to learn and grow, so let's look for the sunlight behind the clouds that often dominate our adult outlook on life. William Wordsworth put this thought brilliantly:
My heart leaps up when I behold
A rainbow in the sky:
So was it when my life began;
So is it now I am a man;
So be it when I shall grow old,
Or let me die!
The Child is the father of the Man;
And I could wish my days to be
Bound each to each by natural piety.
(From Sunrise magazine, February/March 2002; copyright © 2001 Theosophical University Press)