I'm so glad I'm not jaded.

I was sitting in my living room and thinking about something. Okay, I was thinking about the few people I knew when I was young who had been victims of Dr. Mengele's experiments.

Huh? What's a photo of a rainbow to do with that?

Well, nothing.

Although, it says something about the state of my mind (and a mind), for one can go to thoughts of torture and genocide to standing in the rain with a grin on one's face, marveling at the beauty of nature.

As the topic line says, I'm so glad I'm not jaded.

I was sitting on my sofa, watching a documentary, when I noticed the light had changed. The rain was beating down hard. I thought, "There's got to be a rainbow somewhere."

As I stood up to go get my camera, a rainbow started to form. Then there were two, though one was too subtle for my point and shoot.

I went outside, knocked on my neighbor's door, and the two of us walked over to a spot where we could practically see it from beginning to end. We were both smiling like children, and I felt absurdly happy. I realized I have forgotten exactly why rainbows form, and thought I should look it up. That idea made me even happier, for I was filled with gratitude that I'm an adult who still is thrilled by seeing things I've seen many a time before, and still asks questions like "why is the sky blue?"

Is this saccharine? Maybe some of you think so.

There is something about this that relates to thoughts of genocide and torture. I had been thinking about why I wasn't angry and bitter (at least most of the time). Those feelings do me no good. I prefer, when I can, to focus on that which brings me joy.

I can do this and not shut my mind to the realities of this wretched world, for the activities of human beings surely can be wretched. But, that won't prevent me from enjoying the birds, the rainbows, and simply being alive.

Don't know what causes rainbows? Find out here.