Look towards the horizon

Lift your eyes and look towards the sunburnt horizon. So much is going on in the world today, it is easy to feel pulled down. The world is too dark, life too uncertain, the future unknown. We cannot let ourselves drown in this mire of unanswered questions. We need to lift our head. We need to look up.

The history of humankind has oscillated between peace and conflict since it began. The global challenges we face today are real. Something that happens on the other side of the planet still impacts us. When we see suffering, we feel empathy towards those experiencing pain. It is no use to withdraw. We are one; we are many.

However, the history of humankind has, despite the trappings of suffering, moved relentlessly onward. A nation might experience a dark hour of oppression or war. In another generation, that same nation is released and rebuilt. Sometimes the night last so long that spirits break. It does not last forever. 

Yeperenye Walk, between Jesse Gap and Emily Gap, East MacDonnell Ranges

In this country, in this hour, we are free. We watch the night shadows fall in other locations; we watch the skies to see how close they come to us. But we must remember a moment is not a lifetime. If we lift our heads, we rise; if we rise, we prevail.

The horizon is always there as the backdrop to all human activity. Its stretch is limitless, its epicentre untouchable. No matter what plays out on desert earth, everything is hemmed in by the distant horizon. When we see its breadth, we see opportunity; by its permanence we are encouraged that no matter what happens, the sinking sun will be received, and morning will come forth the next day. When we lift our eyes to the horizon, we have hope.