Noah and the Rainbow

Long ago, in a time before any of us can remember, God looked at the world and was very sad. People had stopped being kind to each other. They had forgotten how to love.

But there was one family that still tried hard to be good. The father was a man named Noah.

One day, God spoke to Noah: “I want you to build a boat — but not just any boat. Build a big, big ark. Make it out of cypress wood and seal it with pitch to keep the water out. Make it three stories tall, with a roof, and a door in the side.”

Noah’s neighbors laughed at him. Why would anyone build a giant boat on dry land?

But Noah trusted God and kept building. Hammer by hammer, plank by plank, the ark grew bigger and bigger.

When it was finished, God said: “Now bring in two of every kind of animal — one male and one female — so that they will survive with you. Bring food for all of them, too.”

And so Noah and his family loaded the ark: two elephants, two giraffes, two lions, two bunnies, two birds of every kind. Lions and lambs walking side by side up the gangplank. The sound of snuffling and squawking and mooing filled the air.

Then the rains came. For forty days and forty nights, it rained and rained and rained. The whole land was covered with water. But Noah, his family, and all the animals were safe and dry inside the ark.

When the rain stopped, Noah sent out a dove to look for dry land. The dove flew back with an olive branch in its beak — and Noah knew the waters were going down.

Finally, the ark rested on dry land again. The animals came out — all of them safe! Noah’s family came out too, and Noah said a great prayer of thanks to God.

Then something beautiful appeared in the sky: a great arc of color — red, orange, yellow, green, blue, violet — stretching from one end of the sky to the other.

“I am putting my rainbow in the clouds,” God said. “Whenever you see it, remember my promise: I will always love and care for my creation.”

Every time you see a rainbow, that promise is still shining.