The Serpent and the Rainbow

A bedtime story by Marcy

Above the trees and in the breeze the rainbow spanned the sky,
An arc of color, pure and bright, she sparkled way up high.
And in the grass along the dirt the serpent slithered through,
Looking for his noontime lunch - perhaps a bug or two.

But when he made it to the stream he saw the bow above,
Her shining colors waved hello, and the serpent fell in love
He followed her for miles and miles but never could get close,
The colors dance and laugh and shine, but the serpent felt morose.

It was late and far from home, and the serpent stopped his quest,
He felt a fool for chasing a dream, but at least he tried his best
The rainbow started to fade away with the waning sun,
The serpent would not make it home before the day was done.

He stared up at the sky in vain, the rainbow finally gone,
And just before he looked away, he began to hear a song.
From over there, yes - through that grass, he came upon a pond,
With all the crickets a snake could eat forever and beyond!

And singing on a flat top rock a serpentess so fair,
With scales of green and red and gold that shimmered in the air.
The serpent knew now that his quest had not at all been wrong,
The rainbow had been showing him where his heart was all along.

They lived together by the pond and sang their songs in love,
And once in a while the rainbow appeared and listened from above.
The serpent thanked the rainbow when he finally had a say,
For showing him his one true love who sang for him each day.

So if you find you’re chasing a rainbow you can’t catch,
And you feel it’s all in vain and you’re a sorry wretch,
Just remember what you need isn’t always what you bid,
Trust your heart and take your quest and you’ll be glad you did.