Bad weather appears when you least expect it — suddenly, brilliantly — like a promise from the universe that light always follows the dark.

Living on the Puget Sound, I’ve seen more rainbows — and double rainbows — than any other time in my life. Maybe it’s the endless misty showers, or maybe it’s something more. A reminder. A nudge from heaven. A sign that after a nasty squall, something magical awaits.

A couple of weeks ago, I was deep in the trenches of a deadline, fingers flying across the keyboard, rain plopping on the deck and skylights. The storm had been raging all day, a familiar Pacific Northwest symphony. And then — it happened.

A flicker of color in the sky.

Now, I’ll be the first to admit — I get a little (okay, a lot) kooky when I see a rainbow. Have you ever watched that viral video of the guy losing it over a double rainbow? I could outdo him in a heartbeat.

But this double rainbow was different. It didn’t simply arc across the sky like a gentle brushstroke. It ignited — a fireball of color stretching wide over the Sound, growing, glowing, shifting in hues so intense they seemed to vibrate. As if the heavens had cracked open and the angels themselves were painting the sky.

I was mesmerized.

Because here’s the thing: rainbows are born from storms. The wilder the storm, the more spectacular the rainbow.

Life is no different.

Midlife is its own kind of storm — a perfect storm. It shakes us. It wakes us. It forces us to let go of who we thought we were and step into who we’re meant to be. It’s time to break free of the black-and-white version of life we’ve been handed. It’s time to start painting outside the lines.

We aren’t meant to live in grayscale. We are meant to live in technicolor.

And here’s something else — we are  the rainbows.

As an energy worker, I see it. I feel it. Every single one of us has an aura, a field of energy radiating beyond our physical body. And just like a rainbow, we are made of color — our chakras glowing in vibrant hues, reflecting the energy we carry.

The brighter the energy, the brighter the human.

So let this be your reminder: Be the Rainbow.

Let the storms come. Let them shake you. Let them carve new paths for light to enter. And then — shine. Glow in a full spectrum of color.

Like Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz, it’s time to step away from the black-and-white world and embrace the colors waiting for you.

Because you, my friend, are the perfect rainbow.

Go shine.