It’s been a while since a movie moved me to tears. I often long for those old, tender films — simple stories told with sincerity and warmth. A Shine of Rainbows is one such film. It’s the kind of story that lingers in your heart long after the credits roll, a gentle, enduring whisper of love, healing, and the human spirit.
When life feels colorless, love brings the rainbow
The focus keyword “what is love” finds its answer in a boy named Tom. Raised in a cold, grey orphanage, Tom is shy, withdrawn, and frequently bullied. Although all the children there have suffered loss, pain doesn’t always make people kind. Sometimes, it pushes them to hurt others to feel less broken. For Tom, the world was colorless — literally and emotionally. Everything around him was grey: The walls, the floors, the uniforms, even the air felt weighed down.
But one day, during yet another instance of bullying, a woman appeared like a sudden ray of sunlight. Her name was Maire. She had golden hair, a warm smile, and eyes full of kindness. Tom didn’t know it then, but she would become his mother.
Maire hadn’t chosen Tom out of a catalog. She trusted her intuition — and perhaps something higher. When she saw him being bullied from the orphanage window, something inside her said: This child is meant for me.
Building a home, one color at a time
Maire took Tom to a remote Irish island, where his new home was a little white cottage nestled among rolling green hills. He met Alec, Maire’s husband, and his new foster father there. Unlike Maire’s immediate warmth, Alec’s face froze when he first saw Tom. His silence made Tom feel like an unwelcome shadow.
Still, Maire’s love was unwavering. She gave Tom his bedroom with red bedsheets, a yellow raincoat, and blue pajamas — each item a splash of color contrasting the orphanage’s drabness. She wanted him to feel joy, see beauty, and believe in something better.
One rainy afternoon, Maire jumped into a puddle and invited Tom to do the same. Hesitant at first, Tom soon joined in, laughing and shouting, soaked with rain and happiness. In that muddy chaos, something inside him was set free.
Doubts and disappointments
But love isn’t always easy. One night, Tom overheard Alec say: “I hoped you would pick a strong boy. I don’t understand why you chose that frightened little ghost.” It crushed Tom. Yet the next morning, he pulled back the curtain and saw a rainbow hanging in the sky. It was as if Maire had painted it there just for him — a reminder that someone believed in him.
One of the film’s most touching symbols is a baby seal, first seen when Maire and Tom sit by the shore. Maire tells him that seals are messengers who can carry words to the souls of loved ones who’ve passed. Tom whispers to the seal: “Please tell my grandma I like it here.” It is a small, tender moment, but it says much about his longing for connection and growing sense of belonging.
The heartbreak no one saw coming
The orphanage director arrived with adoption papers when life seemed to settle into a rhythm. All three — Alec, Maire, and Tom — had to agree for the adoption to become official. Maire signed without hesitation. But Alec left his signature space blank. Tom noticed. That blank space became a mirror of how invisible he felt in Alec’s heart.
Sitting by the sea one night, Tom quietly asked Maire: “Can I call you mom?” She answered with a smile, “I’d love that.” That night, in the wind and the waves, he finally let himself believe: Maybe I have a mother now.
Maire was overjoyed and told Alec, but he still couldn’t shake his sadness or uncertainty. She gently reminded him: “Maybe Tom is God’s gift to us.” Those words finally broke through to Alec, if only slightly.
Seals, second chances, and shattered hearts
Alec brought him to rescue a stranded seal pup to bond with Tom. He warned that if the pup’s mother didn’t return, it would die. Tom saw himself in that helpless animal and committed to feeding it daily. Alec, watching him care for the creature, began to soften.
Still, their connection was fragile. When Alec failed to attend a promised fishing trip, Maire took Tom in the boat instead. She shared her story there: She had also grown up in an orphanage. She’d never been chosen. Perhaps this was why she decided to give Tom a better life and heal a wound in her heart. Just as she finished speaking, a rainbow appeared across the sea. Tom was thrilled. Maire, smiling at his happiness, didn’t know it would be the last rainbow she’d ever see.
Soon after, her health deteriorated. The exertion from the boat trip had been too much. Maire passed away, leaving both Tom and Alec shattered.
When love is stronger than grief
Alec was devastated. He fell into despair — drinking, sitting silently by the sea, removing all the bright decorations Maire had loved. Tom, despite his grief, tried to support him, but nothing helped. When Alec burned Maire’s colorful things, Tom couldn’t hold back. “You killed her!” he screamed. “She took me out to sea because you didn’t come. I hate you!”
The pain was unbearable. Tom decided to leave. On the morning of his departure, he saw another rainbow. Rushing home, he told Alec and gave him the red ribbon Maire had left behind. Then, without waiting for a reply, he packed his things and quietly slipped away.
But something had shifted in Alec. Holding the ribbon, he remembered love. He made breakfast for the first time since Maire’s death and called out for Tom. But the house was empty. Then he saw Tom at sea, rowing a small boat, headed toward the rocks. Panic set in. Alec raced after him, but it was too late. A wave capsized the boat. Alec screamed his name, and in that terrifying moment, he realized just how much Tom meant to him. However, seals surrounded the boy as if by a miracle, gently carried him back to shore. Alec embraced him, speechless. The boy he once saw as a stranger had become his son.
So what is love?
Back home, Alec noticed the dull tablecloth and replaced it with the bright one Tom had given him. The house, once grey, had color again. Tom, unsure, asked about the adoption papers. “You didn’t sign them, did you?” he asked. Alec replied: “Of course not.” Disheartened, Tom turned to leave again. Then Alec said: “I won’t sign it without your permission.” Tom froze. “My permission?” Alec asked: “Do you want to return to the orphanage?” “No,” Tom whispered. “Then you don’t have to.”
And with that, Alec signed his name. Tom ran into his arms, and for the first time, the once-distant man held his son close. Finally, they were a family. And in that embrace, full of pain, love, and healing, you see the real answer to the question: What is love? Love is choosing each other repeatedly, even after grief and heartbreak. Love is what makes us whole.
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