The Grey Rainbow

AINS RECORD INFORMATION

Title: The Grey Rainbow
Category: Short Story
Author: Ening Collection
Publisher: Ening Collection
Language: English
Number of pages: 1
Year published: 2026

DESCRIPTION

A gentle story about grief and friendship, showing that sadness does not disappear instantly but colour can slowly return through patience, creativity and support.

STORY

After her mother died, colours seemed to leave Maya’s world.

The red flowers outside school looked dull. The blue sky looked pale. Even her box of crayons remained closed.

Maya used to draw rainbows with her mother every Sunday. They invented funny colours such as mango-orange and sleepy-purple. Now, every colour reminded Maya of what she had lost.

During art class, the teacher asked everyone to draw a happy memory. Maya chose only a grey pencil. She drew a rainbow made of seven grey arches.

A pupil behind her whispered, “Rainbows are not grey.”

Maya lowered her head, but her friend Aisyah moved her chair closer.

“Maybe this one is,” Aisyah said.

She did not force Maya to use brighter colours. She simply coloured a small grey cloud beside the rainbow.

The next week, Aisyah brought two sheets of paper. “Can we draw together? You choose the colours.”

Maya chose grey again. Then she noticed a yellow crayon that was the colour of her mother’s favourite scarf. Her chest hurt, but she made one tiny yellow star.

On Sunday, Maya opened the crayon box at home. She drew the grey rainbow and added the yellow star. The following week, she added a green leaf because Mother had loved gardening.

Slowly, the picture changed. It was never completely bright. Grey remained between the colours, but Maya no longer thought that made the picture wrong.

She brought it to school and explained, “The grey is my sadness. The colours are the memories that still make me smile.”

Her classmates became quiet. Several children shared times when they had also felt sad.

The teacher displayed Maya’s drawing with a note: Every feeling belongs.

Months later, Maya still missed her mother. Some days were colourful, while others felt grey again. She learned that healing did not mean forgetting or pretending to be happy.

A rainbow can appear while rain is still falling.

With time, friendship and courage, Maya allowed both sadness and love to remain in her picture—and in her heart.

SUMMARY

Maya sees the world in grey after her mother dies and draws a grey rainbow. With Aisyah’s patient friendship, she slowly adds colours representing loving memories and learns that healing can include both sadness and hope.

MORAL LESSONS

It is acceptable to feel sad after a loss. Good friends listen without forcing someone to feel better. Healing takes time, and happy memories can exist beside grief.