Michael Chugani 褚简宁 - Rainbows｜又中又英

Rainbows can mean different things to different people. For some people, a rainbow is a sign of good luck or hope. For those who believe in Heaven, seeing a rainbow after the death of a loved one, such as a family member or a good friend, means the loved one is at peace in Heaven. Queen Elizabeth II, who died on September 8, was a religious person. Something inexplicable (unable to be explained) happened on the day she died. Media reports said many people saw multiple rainbows in the sky. Some will take this with a pinch of salt.

To take something with a pinch of salt means to not believe in something because you think it is unlikely to be true. But pictures in the media showed rainbows did appear. Just as news of the Queen’s death was announced a rainbow appeared above Windsor Castle. She loved living there and was buried there. Earlier in the day, after an announcement that she was seriously ill, a double rainbow appeared over Buckingham Palace, her official residence. On the day after the Queen died, her grandson Prince William said five rainbows appeared over Balmoral, the castle in Scotland which she loved and where she died.

Did he and others who saw rainbows let their imaginations run away with them? If you let your imagination run away with you it means you are unable to control your emotions or imagination and let them control you instead. It could be that Prince William and the Queen’s fans imagined the rainbows but pictures don’t lie. Even ABC News, America’s most-watched news channel, reported multiple rainbows when the Queen died.
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彩虹对于不同的人来说可以有不同的意义。对一些人来说，彩虹是幸运或希望的征兆。而对于那些相信有天堂的人来说，当在挚爱如家人或朋友死后见到彩虹，那即意味着那位挚爱已在天堂安息。英女皇伊利沙伯二世于九月八日逝世，她是位虔诚的信徒。在她离世当天，一件难以解释的（inexplicable）事情发生。传媒报道有许多人看到天上挂着多道彩虹。一些人对此则甚有保留（with a pinch of salt）。

To take something with a pinch of salt的意思是不完全相信某事，因为你认为那不可能是真的。但媒体中的照片确实显示彩虹出现了。正当英女皇死讯公布后，温莎城堡的上空出现了一道彩虹。她喜爱住在那里，最终亦在那里安葬。在当天稍早时间，当宣布她病危时，她的主要寝宫白金汉宫的上空便出现了双彩虹。而在英女皇过身的第二天，她的孙子威廉王子说，在巴摩卢城堡上空出现了五道彩虹，巴摩卢就是她所爱，最后在那里撒手尘寰的城堡。

威廉王子以及其他见到彩虹的人，是否 let their imaginations run away with them？若你 let your imagination run away with you的意思是你任由自己的情绪与想像力驰骋，让其主宰了你，亦即异想天开、胡思乱想。或许是威廉王子和英女皇的拥趸想像出彩虹来，但照片不会说谎。就连美国最多人收看的电视新闻频道，美国广播公司的 ABC新闻，也报道英女皇离世时天上出现了多抹彩虹。中译：七刻
Michael Chugani 褚简宁