Stopping For Rainbows

A few years ago, I took a roadtrip from Denver to SanFrancisco. After a visit in the bay area with friends, I was on my way back to Colorado. Driving through Utah I encountered torrential rain, thunder, and lightening that sparked the most breathtaking double rainbow I had ever seen.

I pulled off the highway onto the shoulder to take a few photos and sit awhile to fully experience the magical moment. The Toyota vibrated with the movement of traffic whizzing by and I found myself unable to re-enter the stream of traffic. I did not trust my ability to judge the distance and speed of the oncoming cars. Plus, my vehicle lacked pep...so I waited. I waited until the coast was entirely clear so that I could ease back into the flow and continue on my journey without getting killed.

I had lost more than an hour of driving time and found myself reaching the higher altitudes as sun set. Pretty soon the rains began again. The white-knuckle drive on a totally dark winding two-lane highway appeared to have no end in sight until I noticed a few trucks parked off the road. I joined the pack and tried to sleep in the backseat with a small blanket that did not quite keep me warm that cold night. It was scary and uncomfortable.

The next morning was fresh and still as dawn broke and I was back on the road without rain and darkness for an effortless journey across sunny Wyoming and down to Denver.

The wheel of life symbolizes the samsaric nature of existence...the circular cyclic movement of life through birth, suffering, sickness, old age, death. It's really not THAT bad, but I have noticed that the momentum of the turning wheel of our daily life feels so familiar that stepping off for awhile can be quite disorienting and groundless...also liberating.

Leaving the flow of traffic that afternoon in Utah was like stepping off the wheel. Leaving the familiar world of life and work in Denver to move to Buffalo also has been a step off the wheel.

The rainbow photos from that afternoon in Utah were unimpressive. Had I resisted the urge to stop that day in the rain, I would have passed through the rainbow and the mountains without event. The drama of the moment would not have welded itself into a shape.....no story, no metaphor, no inspiration. I need shapes.