A Reflection on Renewal
30
By
Arabella Lawler
A Reflection on Renewal It was a crisp and quiet New Year’s Eve and it was snowing, just like it does in the movies. I was returning home from my government approved walk of the day, when I saw something that struck me with a soft, but renewed sense of hope. I saw a young foal, galloping through the field by my house. It was freezing, and I could see its icy breath, steaming powerfully through its nostrils like smoke. This young foal was born in March last year. I remembered this, because it was born the same week that the UK was plunged into what is now known as ‘the first lockdown’. This new life arrived into the world, blissfully unaware of the pandemic, or anything outside the grassy enclosure of its field. I think back to those days and remember it being so refreshing – the simple joy of trying to catch a glimpse of the baby foal, commenting on how much it had grown in a single day and vying for its attention. As the seasons changed and time passed, we watched this young foal
take its first cautionary steps, in true Bambi style. Legs clumsily flailing and disproportionately long for its body. Back then, the foal was glued to its mother’s side like a shadow, trundling alongside and never apart from her protective gaze.
horse, galloping majestically through the night. Yet, in that moment I truly felt an overwhelming sense of renewed hope about the new year. Flash-forward a few weeks and 2021 has already presented a new set of
Nostalgia, for the precious time that was lost in 2020, but a peculiar sense of renewed hope for the new year. It had been a while since I had last seen the foal, but on that cold New Year’s Eve, I watched this strong young foal, now without its mother, full of life and vigour and galloping self-assuredly. I was immediately struck with a combined sense of nostalgia and hope. Nostalgia, for the precious time that was lost in 2020, but a peculiar sense of renewed hope for the new year.
challenges to overcome. But it is important that we remind ourselves that there is hope on the horizon. And I suppose that this is the message of this piece. That hope sometimes emerges from the most unlikely of places. From vaccines, to fresh starts and new beginnings. Hope sometimes presents itself in the guise of a young horse, galloping through a field.
2021 has been referred to as the ‘Year of Healing’. Not just in terms of putting an end to this global pandemic, but also in terms of emerging from the pandemic with a renewed sense of unity, hope, and a healthy perspective on life. Maybe I was just swept up in the beauty of the moment – of the snow, or seeing the baby foal transform into a strong young
Last year was a difficult year for so many, but it is important to remember that this year can still be a year of renewal. We must remind ourselves to be optimistic and inspired by sometimes even the smallest of moments that surround us, that remind us to be hopeful.
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