Last month my husband and I celebrated our twenty-second anniversary by going on a movie date for the first time in more than a year. I was a little anxious about this plan, but as we sat in a large theater with six other moviegoers all spread out, I eventually relaxed and became immersed in the story of a small town and a horse.
Much to my surprise, as a person who has never once in her life cared about horse racing, this story captured my attention and my heart. As I watched the horses thunder around the track, I realized my heart was beating fast. Then, when the horse I was cheering for actually won that race, I burst into both tears and laughter.
How did I get so emotionally invested in a horse race?
Dream Horse is a movie about a group of people in a small Welsh town who work together to buy and breed a racehorse. The men and women, who become co-owners of a horse they name Dream Alliance, commit to scraping together a few pounds each week not because they believed they would eventually receive a windfall of riches. Instead, they sign up for this adventure because they desperately need hope.
Watching the movie, I tried to understand why these people did what they did (while also cheering so fervently for a horse that I truly was breathless during a scene or two). I recognized that longing — for a reason to get up in the morning, for a purpose beyond myself, for something strong enough to put my hope in.
I wasn’t expecting to find some Truth in the movie theater, but there it was. Join me at (in)courage for what I learned and the rest of this article.
