Half A Rainbow

"What are you supposed to do, when the one you're counting on, turns out she just can't do the math."

Fred Eaglesmith from "Rainbow".

Love that line.

Here's a little more to set the overall tone of the song.

"What are you supposed to do when your rainbow breaks in two, and all those stars come crashing to the ground, when your pot of gold is fool's gold and you're the only fool left around, what are you supposed to do when the one you're counting on, turns out she just can't do the math, what are you supposed to do when your rainbow breaks in two, now all you're left with is a half"

You get the picture. But......................

"Pick up half a rainbow, throw it over your shoulder, tell her you're glad that it's finally over, and find another rainbow you can hook up to, that's what you're supposed to do."

The song is about love, but the meaning is distorted if you interpret it so specifically.

It's about life.

"I am not even close to the man I thought I would be."

That line shows up in approximately 30 million poems, 14 million songs, and 4,500 movies. Poets, songwriters, and script writers finding unique ways to express the surprise of the human experience.

Because those more eloquent are really expressing the amazement of the everyman.

The same line has been uttered in bars since asses first hit bar stools.

Even in Cheers.

Life is a tricky little bastard. Some of us hit the ground running with a plan. Most of us don't.

Doesn't matter how you start out. Plan or no plan, most of us fail to make our lives what we want them to be.

And then.........................

And then you deal with it in whatever method makes sense to you.

Picking up half a rainbow might be the best approach available.

Despair and self abuse accomplish nothing and waste even more time than has already slipped by. Time that cannot afford to be wasted because another one of life's little tricks is to accelerate the passing of time.

Tricky and evil little bastard.

Half a rainbow can still bring color and wonder to your life. It can be something small or something large, something surprising and different, or a variation of whatever dream you might have started out with.

Apropos of the Bukowski quote about "if you're going to try, go all the way", it's possible that throwing yourself into even half a rainbow is the best way to make something of a life. Recognize that this is what your life is, then do the best you can to make it interesting, satisfying and pride-inspiring.

Commitment. Carries a lot of meaning. Commitment in love, resting easy in the warm company of the one who shares your life and your love. (I am lucky that way.)

Commitment to a course of life. Unwavering dedication to finding a way to express individuality, to give the soul a reason to breathe in peace and freedom.

Commitment, going all in, maximizes the limited time you have to be human.

Almost all of us end up with half a rainbow. We recognize it at different stages of our lives. Some early on, some at the age of sixty.

When you see it, pick the damn thing up, sling it over your shoulder and walk (maybe run) like you own the world.

You got nothing to lose, baby.