‘MidWeek’ Readers Love Rainbows

Who would have thought rainbows fascinated so many people?

I certainly didn’t. In fact, when I shared my passion for rainbows in my Aug. 29 column, I sincerely thought many MidWeek readers would simply turn the page and move on to the next item. Turns out, not only did people stop to read the column, several of you reached out and said you were moved to tears.

I want to express an enormous mahalo to all of you who took the time to share your favorite Hawaiian rainbow photographs. Each rainbow came with a story. Many of you shared that same passion for these gifts from Mother Nature and still believe there is a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. And like me, some of you still believe you may catch one someday.

Kathy of Kaneohe sent nine pictures of beautiful rainbows and wrote: “I’m almost 61 and still looking for that pot of gold and catching a rainbow! I’m glad that you haven’t stopped believing, too.”

Kathy, I’ll never stop believing!

Millie Ajirogi found a pot of gold: granddaughter Caryn. Millie Ajirogi photo.

Lindley shared a powerful story after seeing a rainbow near Wailupe Park. She said not everyone takes the time to notice and appreciate the natural wonders that surround us, but on this particular day she did and she’s grateful.

“On the way home today I saw a rainbow in a baby blue sky with white billowy clouds all around, and to top it off, the almost full moon just above the rainbow, just breathtakingly beautiful,” Lindley wrote. “I was born and raised in Hawaii, and have lived most of my 56 years here, and am moving to Seattle this Saturday. To see such a beautiful sight tugged at my heartstrings as I believe there are certainly very few places in the world where one can see what I saw today. And then this evening, I opened the MidWeek and saw your column!”

Thank you Lindley, may you find rainbows in the Pacific Northwest.

Dale Jacobs of Kaua’i shared a story that he experienced 22 years ago during a trip to Kokee to celebrate his son Daniel’s seventh birthday.

“As we parked the car in front of the Kokee Lodge there was a beautiful rainbow on the meadow,” he wrote. “There were four of us, and as we exited the car in silence and awe no one spoke a word, but all held hands together as we ran into the rainbow. Yes,we ran into the rainbow! After all four of us went through, I stopped and walked slowly back into the rainbow and savored every color. Each color band has a different vibrational rate. It was like walking into colored bubbles. My body vibrated differently in each color band. It was an experience I will never ever forget. We saw three more rainbows in Kokee that day. And there is no pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, unless, of course, it was at the other end of the rainbow.”

Dale’s email literally came while I was writing this column. What an awesome gift from the Garden Island. Mahalo, Dale.

And finally, Millie Ajirogi sent a picture with this simple, loving description.

“I too have always wished to find that elusive pot of gold, but this picture shows my ‘Pot of Gold,’ something so valuable that no ‘gold’ can buy,” she wrote. “When I first viewed it, I told my husband, ‘Look at the picture of the rainbow and there is our pot of gold.'”

It was a picture of their beautiful granddaughter standing at the end of a rainbow. Optical illusion? I don’t think so. A true pot of gold.

Yes, rainbows are magnificent, magical and memorable. Enjoy them and never stop believing …