Last October, my Wyoming pal and I found ourselves worrying about the dark skies ahead on a lonely stretch of highway somewhere between Casper and Cody.

We did run into some rain but it wasn’t bad at all. As the shower was ending, we stopped at a convenience store in Shoshoni in search of a clean bathroom and road snacks. When we stepped outside, we saw this rainbow.

We admired it for a moment and I grabbed a couple of photos because rainbows are special and beautiful no matter where they appear.

But I came home and looked at the photos with an honest eye: the street, vacant lot, and power lines really don’t make a great backdrop. I mean, I went all the way to Wyoming and this rainbow couldn’t have shown itself over a mountain or something?

Good gravy.

But I stand by my belief that rainbows are special everywhere and that even an ugly spot can be made nicer with help from nature. And what’s wrong with appreciating the world for what it is? Perfection is boring. Flaws create interest and spark conversation.

This isn’t a cheesy AI generated image or a carefully posed Instagram photo.

This is real life. While not always perfect, real life is pretty great.

Light and color illuminate the world and make the ugly bits that much nicer. And if we can’t appreciate the good when it’s improving a place, will we truly appreciate the good when it’s in just the right spot?

I’m going to stick with appreciating pretty things like rainbows wherever they may appear. Perfection is overrated!