Small Miracle, Major Effect.

Today started off kind of rocky. I was a little late to work, though no later than usual thanks to a little "creative driving." Got to work five minutes late, but still in pretty good spirits. I started working on my assigned tasks and, despite a few bumps, managed to get them done, though I was getting pretty miffed at the fact that my machine wasn't working the way it was supposed to. I didn't really start to get angry until I started making rookie mistakes. Things I should have caught I missed, probably due to my bad mood, though I'm not entirely sure. I was pretty miffed, but still managed to get through the day with all my work completed with minimal hiccups.

Still, I was upset enough that by the time my day was over, I was grumpier than the Dwarf of the same name could ever be. I was leaving the workplace at five thirty, since I had to stay late to cover one of my fellow coworkers' lunch breaks. Not really a problem since I can always use the extra cash. The big event, thoulgh, was what I saw when I left the building, clear as day, and more perfect than I thought anything could ever look:

A rainbow.

That's right, a rainbow. A splash of color created by a mix of sunshine and rain. It was on display as if it were placed there just for me to find, and it immediately cheered me up, as I haven't seen a rainbow in years, much less one that visible and that perfect.

When I saw the image, I immediately remembered the Bible story of Noah and the ark, and what the Rainbow actually means to Christians and Catholics the world over. The rainbow is more than just a ribbon of pretty colors. It's a symbol. A reminder. Specifically, it's a reminder that God will never flood the Earth again, a promise made to Noah and his family once the waters of the Great Flood receded and allowed humanity to flourish once more.

I've been in a bit of a bad place lately. Emotionally speaking, that is. I'm struggling through paying down over 2000 dollars of debt that I racked up because I was a bit freer with the plastic than I should have been, my fiance is unemployed and having trouble finding a job despite all her work at it, and let's not even get into all the crap that's being shoveled out of the White House and Capital Building.

Still, the simple sight of this rainbow reminded me that there are other forces at work in this world. Forces that are way beyond human understanding. It was, I suppose, a reminder that no matter how bad things get, they can always get worse, and they WILL always get better. I wish it were easier for me to remember that from day to day, but apparently I'm having a bit of help in that regard from on high.

I have to confess that I've been questioning my faith this last year as well. Some questions I've been asking haven't been able to answer themselves satisfactorily to me. Why are people who believe as I do ridiculed, mocked, and berated for doing nothing more than standing for their principals? Why is it not okay to be Christian in the most Christian nation on the planet? Why is it okay to believe in a hoax like global warming, but daring to teach children about the Ten Commandments in school is seen as hateful and "backward"?

It just doesn't make any sense to me, the hate. But maybe I'm over complicating this. Maybe I'm so busy analyzing events that the simplest explanation is immediately thrown aside as "too obvious". Simply put, the hate I see, the vitriol I hear, and the events that occur in opposition to any such even slightly religious happening can be summed up in one word: Evil.

Darkness always rails against the light, as they say, and I can only make any sense out of what's happening if I look at it in that regard. The ACLU, for instance, tries to destroy any and all depictions of religious activity in any part of the public square. The attacks on Sarah Palin continue to escalate, with the latest one being a heartless attack on her son Trig, who has Down Syndrome.

I could go on and on about the idea of Darkness railing against the Light as it pertains to Sarah Palin all day long, as new attacks mount about her by the hour. I could go on for an equal amount of time about the ACLU. I won't do that because we all know how bad those things are already.

The point I'm trying to make is that I see so much evil in the world now that I am beginning to lose sight of the good that exists as well, though I am reminded of it from time to time, as I was today with the sight of the rainbow.

I always believed that evil existed, but now I realize that it was largely from an academic point of view that I believed in it. I knew people did evil things, but I always thought that they'd get theirs eventually, and never really noticed the impact those evil deeds and individuals had on other lives. I also knew not to do those evil things myself, and am happy to say that as far as true evil goes, I don't fit the bill. Forgive me if I sound like I'm tooting my own horn here.

Heh. And just now I'm confronted with yet another small miracle. Somehow, some way, I was inspired to go looking for Youtube vids appropriate for complimenting this post, and I find this little gem:



Good advice...I think I'll take it.

Continuing to Fight the Good Fight...