Somewhere over the rainbow

Two days ago my husband, Brian and I were kayaking off the sunshine coast in British Columbia. The summer, up to this point had been hot and dry. Except, that is for the two days we decided to go camping. Initially I was dissappointed because of the weather and I was close to cancelling the trip. I wanted our time away to be perfect and we weren’t going to get the sunshine.  We decided to move forward with the trip anyway and when the rains came we retreated to our tent for cover.

After the torential downpour passed we emerged from the tent, walked down toward the crystal clear, cool water and saw the most amazing sight. Never in my 40 years had I seen something as awe inspiring and beautiful. Not one but two rainbows formed right before our eyes with the mountains as their back drop. What was even more special was we could see both the start and end of each rainbow which is a rare sighting indeed. We both stood rivited to our spots, unable to move. We were absorbed in our surroundings and enveloped in what nature had so thoughtfully created for us. We were alone on the beach and there wasn’t another soul around for miles. We watched the rainbows for 30 minutes and only tore ourselves away when they finally lost their brillance.

Experiences like this always make me stop and think about life. I thought about pots of gold at the end of the rainbow. I hummed the title song from the Wizard of OZ, I can never remember the words even though I’ve seen the movie a million times. I was happy to be in the right place at the right time. I also was aware of the irony of wishing for sunny hot weather and then being given the gift of double rainbows.

Sometimes in life we can get so wrapped up in ourselves, our work or just pushing to achieve. It’s easy to stay on the treadmill and never take time to enjoy life and all it has to offer. A two day camping trip, like the one we just took recharges the batteries. It helps us slow down and get back to what’s really important which is connecting as a couple and with nature. Being in the backcountry you concentrate on lifes’ basic needs and leave technology, worry and stress behind. We rise with the sun and bed with it and we can sit for hours and just stare at the water.

We often tend to think that the grass is greener on the other side or somewhere over the rainbow is where our true happiness lies. I believe happiness comes in waves. There are moments of bliss to be enjoyed throughout life. The key lies in recognizing the beauty of the rainbow you make in your life and then finding the time to enjoy it.