It had to happen

Ah, of course it couldn't stay out, could it? You seriously didn't think I'd blog for 30 days in a row without even posting a picture of Rowan. Sorry, that's just not going to happen. And no, I don't plan to always fall back on old photos, and certainly not post pictures of Rowan every day. But for today I couldn't think of much else.

Follow my Rainbow

A rainbow. Well ... it's not that I have hundreds of photos of that ready. On the contrary. I found two, this picture of Rowan, and another picture of a rainbow seen from our backyard. I don't think that photo is that special. So for today a picture of a rainbow, and Rowan.

What is a Rainbow?

Of course everyone has seen a rainbow at some point. And the scientific explanation for a rainbow is just boring. It is an optical weather phenomenon that occurs when sunlight is refracted and reflected by water droplets. At times when this happens, often after a rain shower in the summer, or when there is a lot of water mist in the air and the sun wants to break through, you get those beautiful rainbows.

That is the practical scientific approach. But as practical as it is, I just find it a terribly boring approach. Things get a little more interesting when we look at the symbolic meanings of a rainbow. Some examples of this are:

Symbolic Meanings

• Hope and promise: Because after a rain shower the light often shines differently, much more beautiful, and all colors can be perceived much brighter, a rainbow is often seen as a sign of hope. And the promise of better times.

• Connection and unity: A rainbow is composed of different colors that together form one whole. And precisely this is the reason why a rainbow is often used as a symbol for the connection between people.

• Spirituality and mysticism: In some cultures, the rainbow is seen as a spiritual symbol. Their interpretation of a rainbow is transformation, enlightenment and the connection between the earth and the sky.

• Luck and Abundance: This one needs little explanation, but there are cultures that believe that a rainbow symbolizes happiness and prosperity. Just think of the stories that at the end of the rainbow there is a big pot of gold waiting for the lucky finder. This gold would be guarded by a gnome and even if you managed to find it, the gnome wouldn't just give his treasure to you.

We're not there yet!

The rainbow has special significance in various mythologies and religions. Some examples of this are:

• According to Greek mythology, a rainbow appears when the goddess Iris brings a message from heaven to earth.

• In the bible, the rainbow is associated with God's promise to Noah after the flood. It is written in a story in Genesis that God had placed a rainbow in the sky as a sign that he would never again destroy the earth by a flood.

• In Hindu mythology, the rainbow is considered to be the bow of Indra. Indra is the god of thunder and lightning and used the rainbow as a weapon to defeat his enemies.

• In Native American mythology, they see the rainbow as a symbol of hope, harmony, and abundance. It is also associated with the Great Spirit, the creator of everything.
  
  

Hope, Promise and Abundance

You can conclude from this that the rainbow is generally seen as a positive symbol of hope, promise and abundance. Also, a rainbow is often associated with a symbolic connection between the earth and the sky.

For me personally

And in that context, as a symbolic connection between Earth and Heaven, today I'm posting Rowan's photo with a rainbow. What is known to everyone is that Rowan is no longer on this earth. He crossed the rainbow bridge in 2019. And from that day on, I can never look at a rainbow without thinking of all the dogs that have crossed the rainbowbridge. All the dogs that have left my side and went to heaven. And I imagine that I will see them sometime again ...

The many pictures I've taken of him in the 11 years he was my best friend keep his memory alive. No passionate story about Rowan today, I've done that so many times. Not even passionate words for the rainbow…just a fond memory for me … and another day filled in my #HiveBloPoMo

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