Candle in the wind

That warm glow
London, ON, October 2010

As we continue our exploration of all things yellow (follow your mouse here for more Thematic Photographic yellow-themed goodness) it occurs to me that this particular optical wavelength is more commonly associated with happiness than more sober colors like, say, grey or black.

I don't know why this is so, or why some colors tend to mean different things in different cultures. In my own stumblings through the universe, yellow has always cast a happy glow over my life. It was a warm, sunny day when I first met the woman I'd someday marry. The bike that carried me ultra-long distances across town during my most hard-core years as a bike commuter was banana-yellow. Speaking of bananas, I wouldn't have had the stamina to ride that far without them. All in all, yellow's been good to me.

And so we come to these candles. Every Friday, my wife lights them with our daughter. It's a tradition, both in our home and in the legacy of who we are. Mothers and daughters light candles to welcome in Shabbat (the Jewish Sabbath). Everything stops as they light them and say the blessing, then wish everyone in the house a happy and peaceful Shabbat. It's a small thing, really, but such a touchstone of our family and our daughter's relationship with her mom that it's something I've long tried to capture with a camera.

I doubt this picture does the trick, but it'll have to suffice for now. Because that friendly yellow glow simply continues the warm fuzzies I've long felt every time I cross paths with a certain woman who inexplicably still loves me. Thank goodness for small miracles.

Your turn: Do you have a color/life/happy to share? Please do!

One more thing: Please find the person closest to you and wish him/her a happy new month. It's a small thing, I know. But small things add up.