Did you know that April 3 is observed as National Rainbow Day? This morning when I learned that Friday, April 3, 2020 was National Rainbow Day, I couldn’t help but think of a better symbol of hope our nation currently needs after 3 weeks of many families practicing “social distancing” and staying home to help contain the spread of COVID-19.
Rainbows are caused when rays of light from the sun hit water droplets which reflect some of the light back towards an observer. The water droplets are usually rain drops, but could also be spray from a waterfall, a fountain, or even fog. To see a rainbow, you must have the sun shining behind you and the water droplets in front of you.
Throughout time rainbows have been seen as a sign of beauty, hope, and promise.
In a time period where we are fearful of a virus contained in human water droplets, let’s not forget how we can reflect the Son’s (Jesus’) rays of light that are shining through us to create a beautiful portrait of hope and promise that is bigger than any virus and assurance that we will make it through this period of uncertainty.
The sun may be shining where you live today so hunting down a rainbow is out of the picture, but there are many ways you can create a rainbow to spread hope in your home or local community.
A list of 20 Rainbow themed activities you can use to spread BEAUTY, HOPE, and PROMISE today.
- Tie-dye t-shirts
- Draw rainbow chalk drawings on sidewalks
- Bake a rainbow cake
- Paint rainbows on the windows of your home
- Skittle Rainbow Experiment
- Dye hard boiled eggs for Easter
- Rainbow Shaving Cream Marbled Art
- Torn paper rainbows for preschoolers
- Make Fruit Loop cereal rainbows
- Rainbow handprint rainbow for toddlers
- Coffee filter rainbow craft
- Make rainbow fruit kabobs
- Paint rainbows and messages on rocks and leave on neighbor’s front steps.
- Read classic children’s books like The Rainbow Fish, Elmer the Elephant
- Make rainbow slime
- Rainbow yarn art
- Make recycled rainbow crayons from melting crayon pieces
- Make rainbow juice popsicles
- Go on a color hunt throughout your house photographing single color items and merge them together for a rainbow collage.
- Write message of hope and encouragement on colored post-it notes and stick on friends and neighbor’s front doors.
Be a rainbow in someone else’s cloud.
Somewhere over the rainbow skies are blue and the dreams that you dare to dream really do come true.
Make sure to share your rainbow activities on social media and incorporate the following hashtags to inspire and encourage others.
- #NationalFindARainbowDay
- #FINDaRainbow
- #MAKEaRainbow
- #BEaRainbow
- #CreateLightInTheShadow
- #TheWayHomeLife
