Feature Articles
Somewhere Over The Rainbow
A smile awakes like each new dawn,
Its brilliance shining as the morn.
Lighting up the lives of men,
Instilling joy in hearts again.
A smile to wash away the tears,
A smile that melts the toll of years.
Our countenance forever changed,
Priorities now rearranged.
A smile exchanged worth more than gold,
The smile of smiles to change the world.
A spark ignited soon does glow,
And ev’ry being on Earth shall know –
For smiles are catching, can’t you see,
The rainbow reaching from you to me?
A smile is infectious, once we start it catches on. A smile can light up a room, or the face of a passer-by. It doesn’t discriminate; crossing all boundaries in the twinkling of an eye, it transcends cultural and religious beliefs and language barriers to unite humanity in an instant, as its meaning is clear. A grin of satisfaction, or a shared moment of compassion, a knowing smile exchanged between friends or a smile that radiates with the glow of white teeth; it brightens our day and lifts us to another state.
We can tell if words smile; if they are delivered with the intention to ‘fill us with happiness’, or hold a tone that is designed to ‘bring us down’. Animals sense the true meaning of our communications easily, yet we’ve become adept at putting on a brave face and hiding our feelings behind it, or fixing a grimace for the camera when we’d rather be elsewhere – the watered-down version of the genuine article passed for the truth as we fool ourselves we are enjoying some of the tasks we undertake, but secretly hate.
We are taught to ‘keep up appearances’ and to ‘grin and bear’ situations that we feel obligated to endure, or can see no way out of, because we are in the middle of trying to make ends meet. With our endless optimism and enthusiasm we like to look to the future or the bigger picture, and therefore learn to make the most of what we’ve got.
We’re on our way to a better place, so we believe that with determination we will make it – for perseverance pays off, and nothing can stand in the way of our dreams. One minute we can be ticking along, head down, just getting on with what we have to do – because it is a means to an end – and the next minute we can look up, and be there. We’ve made it; we’ve achieved our goal, or whatever we’d set our sights on.
We’ve climbed to the top of the mountain, and this is where we get to enjoy the view, except we’re in a hurry to get moving before the conditions change, and having trouble breathing the air at this altitude, and having pushed ourselves so hard to get there, all we want to do is collapse in a heap.
What now? What’s next? Can we ever equal a great achievement, or give it the time to really sink in before we’re thinking about the next goal? Ticking another challenge off the list where we line up the tasks ahead of us that make life interesting, as we reach a new objective and stretch ourselves towards our chosen object of desire, or start to feel a sense of gratification that comes as validation from others as we add a new string to our bow and prove our worth.
We like results. We like to see our efforts coming to something – the fruits of our labours ripening for the harvest, after all our care and attention. When we set our minds on something we tend to be good at retaining our focus until we’ve reached our target, and then we can give ourselves permission to move on.
We’re sure that if we give up we let ourselves down and have to learn to live with failure, and in doing so, become a disappointment, in our eyes as well. We have a fear of failure because it shouts to the world that we haven’t achieved what we set out to do – that we haven’t crossed the finish line, or reached our destination ‘on top’, or in the ‘winning position’, which buys the emotional collateral that comes with outward success if we measure it as competing against others.
We’re brought up to be competitive by nature; to fight our way ahead; to try and gain an advantage; to prepare for the conditions that we’re going to find on the battlefield of the world and to learn to always have the upper hand when it comes to facing our many opponents and breaking free, so that we’re the ones that stand out.
Except, there’s another paradox. We don’t always want to stand out, and spend a great deal of time blending in like the wallpaper we become when we try and ‘fit in’, camouflaging ourselves as we adapt to different environments and social situations so we will be accepted. We want to be loved for who we are, but we don’t often show what that is – the real ‘us’ is kept packed away behind our colourful wrapping paper and reserved for intimate friends.
We wear ‘uniforms’ that suit various occasions depending on the image we wish to portray; to leave an impact or create an impression, or recede into the background and merge with the shadows, barely perceptible as we then observe others.
We all interact in different ways, depending on where our mood takes us. One day we might feel like being the life and soul of the party, and the next, disappear entirely. We are experts in matching our moods to colours. Nature has a whole array for us to choose from – yellow if we’re happy, and blue if we’re a little soulful. Red if we’re ready to take on the world, a calm green and we’re as cool as the shade of the forest.
Colours speak to us in a way that they arouse our passions or connect to memories, or associations that we’ve tucked away, like the brightness of a sunny day. Pastels float, and bold tones strike a note. We feel their intensity as a vibration – a million particles of light dancing in front of our eyes and reflecting back to us as we register the picture and etch its details in our mind. A myriad of variations forming an immense palette to choose from if we think about all the blends and subtleties as each colour wave merges into another in our spectrum of visible light.
Yet what we see is but a fragment of the unseen light and energies around us. We know it exists; we see the result of exposure to UV rays and feel the warmth generated by infra red, but what lies beyond the boundaries of our perception, or outside of the realm of our senses?
If we tune in we can ‘see’ sounds correspond to colour frequencies, and as our body rhythms slow and we draw our awareness to our inner world, the light that emerges from the darkness begins to glow. Just as objects in our external world are accompanied by shadows, from the shadows of our internal world comes light.
If we stare at the full moon then close our eyes we are left with a residual image; we can see it clearly burnt into our mind – it is something that remains in an altered state as we change the backdrop. A cluttered noisy environment filled with stimulus vying for our attention, or a peaceful place where we draw upon our inner strength and reserves – calling all of our senses back to us.
Bringing our awareness to the present moment. Calling back the part of us that is racing ahead and the emotions that we have invested in others problems and our daily schedule; cut into blocks of time and actions that demand a piece of us.
One foot lingering at home, while the other is already marching down the supermarket aisle to decide what’s for dinner. Giving a hand here and there, a shoulder to cry on and our heart to a good cause. While we’ve got one ear to the ground so we remain informed and the other overhearing a conversation in the next room, and we’ve shut ourselves off from work entirely, because we’re already somewhere else.
Our head in the clouds, and our minds filled with distractions as we meet the demands of our modern lives, and spread ourselves out in the effort to keep up with everything that demands our attention and time. The most precious commodity – time, a luxury we want to afford. Can we ever have enough of it? What do we have to do to earn it? If we believe we’ve worked hard enough to deserve it do we measure it out in small doses as a special reward?
Time to dream. The time to read a good book and to travel off on a journey, catching a glimpse of another reality until we’re brought back to Earth with a thud. Time to indulge in life’s simple pleasures like sleeping in, and a leisurely breakfast. Time for a long bath, or time to just lie on the grass.
A gentle stroll through the day, rather than a pressing pace. The air filled with roses, and the smell of roasting coffee or freshly baked bread, or the aromas of a slow-cooked meal that promises the day is not over yet. A dawn, and the sunset. A glass of wine in front of an open fire, or a picnic on a peak.
Is this what we live for? The moments that fill us with pleasure as we take the time to savour every minute of our existence here on Earth? Each breath filled with the goodness of the air that surrounds us as we drink in magical experiences, and collect the essence of every outburst of laughter and outpouring of joy. Each second to be treasured as we witness the wonders of Nature as an ever-evolving show – when we take the time to look.
From the tiniest ant to the tallest tree, Nature presents itself as a living canvas, each action interwoven with the next to form the whole. Not one small gesture is without an effect. Everything occurs for a reason, yet independently from what we know as reason, or logic. Life is automated – guided instinctively by a higher force, and governed by immutable laws that hold balance and order. It has symmetry. Everything has a purpose, a mission to fulfill – a part to play in the full functioning of the whole as a cohesive unit.
Life is always contributing to the continuation of life. Life follows a path, a pattern,
a plan, as all of life supports itself. It is a self-sustaining and self-perpetuating system that seeks only unity as it continues to expand and grow, for in its perfect state, life thrives. It prospers. It holds equilibrium and maintains the optimum conditions for evolution – a forward motion towards an ever-greater pool of possibilities.
Each drop in the ocean adding a new flavour – a distinct difference, its own unique perspective – to the collective sea of consciousness that contains the sum of all things. Our opinions valid, our dreams real, our desires unequalled as we find what makes our heart sing and express ourselves by living life to its fullest. By realising our potential and diving in, boots and all, to embrace everything that fills us with delight – instead of sitting on the sidelines watching the world go by, our senses dulled with lack of sleep or interest, as we count down the hours until we can escape, or can claim back the power over our fate.
If we are biding our time, we’re only bidding it farewell. If we’re squandering it away, perhaps it’s time to play? If we’ve got work on our mind and no time left on our hands, isn’t it time we assessed where we stand?
If we stand up for what we believe in, we stand on our own two feet. If we put up with something, we hold a structure in place by our belief in it. Each one of us has a part to play in contributing to life, through each of our interactions with others.
Spreading kindness and bringing good cheer. Sharing our eagerness for what we love and are busy creating, as we find our way of expressing ourselves in the moment – finding enjoyment in everything we do.
Appreciation bubbles over as our enthusiasm makes way for experiences that are truly engaging to come to the fore. The minutes melt away as time no longer matters when we follow our hearts and dance to our own tune.
Somewhere over the rainbow,
Way up high,
There’s a land that I heard of,
Once in a lullaby.
E.Y. Harburg. The Wizard of Oz.
Three clicks and we’re home. Happy in the shoes we find ourselves in, rather than always wanting to be in someone else’s. Having found our self, because we realise we were never lost.
Every step of the journey has shaped us; it has made us who we are, and we wouldn’t change it for the world – having bridged the gap between one reality and the next we can be eternally grateful when our feet hit the ground.
Our heads filled with the promise of brighter tomorrows, yet our heart firmly anchored in the present as we embrace each waking hour as if it were our first, or last. Remembering what it’s like to be alive, taking the time to notice what’s really around us – having retired from the race, and set a new pace.
Our heart beating as we feel the pulse of life running through our veins – and energy gained. A reason for ‘being’ that outweighs any reasons for ‘doing’ because we have found what inspires us. Like a crystalline sphere of dew collected in a golden cup, we are capturing every precious gem offered as the Earth’s bounty and accepting it for what it is – a gift. The wellspring that we hold being filled with every thought, word and deed we add to the Elixir of Life that is ours to enjoy.
Our cup soon filled to the brim, and as it runneth over, not a drop wasted – for the cup is always full, it is only a matter of acknowledging it. What we ‘see’ is what we get, and as we alter our perception of the world it will smile on us, and bestow its gifts anew.
A new way of being awaits as we reach out and claim the abundance that is
already ours. Each arc on the rainbow lighting the way, as we usher in the return of a Golden Age. Our cups raised, for life as we know it will never be the same.