Rainbow

Driving home from Brooklyn on the Belt Parkway, I was thankful that I witnessed the magical display by Mother Nature. The bright colors of the rainbow triumphed in stark contrast against the backdrop of gray, angry clouds; its full arc high up in the dark sky.

The setting sun's fierce rays behind me turned the drizzling rain into silver on my windshield and transformed the waters of the Narrows Strait shimmering like gold. There was a calmness in the air as if everyone is held spellbound by this beautiful thing in the sky.

And as I was coasting along the Belt, right where the "Fuhgeddaboudit" sign clued me that I was leaving Brooklyn for Queens, the majestic rainbow loomed right in the middle of the road, beyond the horizon. The colors were so distinct and the rainbow so amazingly near that it took my breath away. The cars slowed down and I could almost hear the collective "ahhs".

I vaguely remember the scientific explanation about the rain as the prism that creates the spectrum of colors. How the lights are refracted when the sun light hits the raindrop at an angle. ROYGBIV. In grade school, I hardly paid attention to the science behind this phenomenon.

As a child, I was more interested with the story of the pot of gold over the rainbow "where troubles melt like lemon drops and happy little bluebirds fly". It was our magical bahaghari from those innocent times where skies are blue,and the dreams that you dare to dream really do come true, just over the rainbow.

And if you just look closely, there's a second rainbow! With blue on the outside and red moved to the inside. Double reflections, double pots of gold.

All I know is that I am grateful for the simple joys of a rainbow. As Maya Angelou wrote, “God puts rainbows in the clouds so that each of us- in the dreariest and most dreaded moments- can see a possibility of hope.”



King James Bible- "And the bow shall be in the cloud; and I will look upon it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is upon the earth".












Nov. 2013- A rainbow after Typhoon Yolanda

MUSIC: SIMPLE JOYS Part 2

My son and I bonded again today as we reminisced about our shared fondness for "My Favorite Things". Thank you Rodgers and Hammerstein for the "Sound of Music". Still cannot understand what gene pool gifted my son with a beautiful voice and an aptitude for piano playing. Seems unbelievable that he came from a parent whose alto try-out was such a disaster that it finally convinced the choir organist to abandon all efforts to change me from a passable (at least in my mind) soprano.

I am a frustrated singer. So gone are my dreams of setting the world on fire with my melodious voice. But I love music, even karaoke music (take that Simon).

These are some of my favorite songs:


There is no decent video of "My Favorite Things" from the Sound of Music but the "Lonely Goatherd" showcased the incomparable Julie Andrews and the puppets. It has now become my LSS (last song syndrome)





A mash-up of these two songs had been featured in the movie "50 Dates".
"Somewhere Over the Rainbow/What a Wonderful World" by Israel "IZ" Kamakawiwoʻole. It must have looked a little strange... a huge man with his ukelele, but it worked.






A sweet and poignant song. Perfect for a Daddy's girl and sure to be a tear-jerker in weddings.
"Sing Me a Song, Daddy" by Jose Mari Chan/ Cherie Gil





Watch how a future multi-awardee stage actress charmed the producers of Miss Saigon with her innocent ways and magnificent voice. Lea will soon be appearing in "Allegiance", an upcoming musical about Japanese-American interment during World War II.

Lea Salonga's audition for Miss Saigon, "Sun and Moon".









I thank my lucky stars that my son never got into rap and hip-hop like the teens of today, although I've been known to break into an apl.d ap (of Black Eyed Peas) song called "Bebot." Go figure. Don't get me wrong; I still don't approve of the the gyrations of the skimpy-clad girls but I love the colorful jeepneys and the display of Filipino pride.