Rainbow Traps

I found a rainbow trapped in a tree several days ago.


I, myself, am not a rainbow catcher; so I could not have freed it if I wanted to. But seeing this sight brought me to the sharp realization that rainbow traps are everywhere. For some reason, we've fallen into the belief that rainbows only exist in the sky--but those sights are when rainbows are free. They proclaim their freedom through the colorful arch of refracted and dispersed sunlight. When trapped they're harder to see, but when you find one, that makes it all the more beautiful.


What makes a rainbow beautiful? Is it the knowledge that a rainbow holds every single color painting the earth? Is it the fact that we can't touch it, but it touches our souls? Or is it the fact it's a promise?


We often forget the promise-side of a rainbow. As many colors as are in the rainbow, those are the promises of God. Everyone loves promises, but most of all, everyone loves promises that are kept. And a rainbow is the beautiful sign of a promise kept by God (never to flood the Earth again) to this day. Every time we see that rainbow, we can remember that He's still keeping that promise.


Now I return to my rainbow trapped in the tree. I'll admit, I went up to it and asked if I could free it. It said to pluck away some of the leaves. If I loosen the trap, it may be able to escape by wintertime. So I did as it suggested--I plucked a few leaves off here and there. Hopefully it's enough for the rainbow to escape, but personally I hope it remains trapped for several more days. I enjoy seeing it every time I drive into my apartment parking lot.

After I picked the leaves, I kept them--spreading a bit of rainbow into my apartment. I had no idea one tree could hold so many different colors at one time. They must be heavy:



The only color really missing is blue. But I think, if I looked closely enough between the branches, I could find it...



Eye photos retrieved on 11/12/10 from: http://eye-ris.org/name
Galaxy photo retrieved on 11/12/10 from: http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/gallery/universe?subselect=Mission:Hubble+Space+Telescope+%28HST%29:
All other photos taken by Nadine Shea on 11/12/10