Rainbows and Work Weeks

It's been a long several weeks at work.  I've been getting all my annual evaluations done, even though they're not due until Oct. 1.  In light of all the uncertainties, it seems wise to get them done. 

Our annual review process involves observing the faculty member teaching a class, preparation of lots of paperwork in advance of the annual reivew process, a meeting with the worker who's being evaluated, then more paperwork and some electronic forms and then the copying and the filing.  August and September were already going to be busy months for me, as half of my department has a hire date of Oct. 1.  With all the other disruptions, it's even more hectic this year.

Yesterday evening, thunderstorms rumbled through.  My office is close to an outdoor patio, and I sometimes go outside, just to take a break from staring at screens.  It's a fairly protected space; last night, I stepped outside to see what the weather was doing.

I turned to go inside, and part of my brain said, "Wait!  Is that a rainbow?"

I turned back and scanned the sky.  Sure enough, a rainbow!

My rational brain knows that rainbows are a result of water droplets and light fracturing into colors of the spectrum.

My optimistic brain sees a rainbow as a good sign.  I remember all those Sunday School lessons that presented rainbows as a symbol of God's grace, a promise that we're protected.

So, in a week where I interviewed for a job in the new organization of my school, in a week where I completed mounds of paperwork, in a week where I spent an astonishing amount of money on car repairs, it was good to see a rainbow.