When Beautiful Things Happen

The first beautiful thing was that she was seen. Not as an object stuck in the mud, but a sentient being gripped by the edge of death. And in that moment—when a person could have walked on by—they didn’t.

They listened to their heart.

That was the first beautiful thing.

The second came with a call. The local SES answered—conscience-led humans trained to respond to the emergencies of others. And in their definition of “others” they included her.

An ailing sheep.

And then—the third. Jumbuck.

She did not know our names. Our faces were unfamiliar to her. She could not yet understand our motives. But something in her—despite her trembling legs and grit-filled eyes—refused to give in.

That’s the thing about sheep. Their strength is not loud. But it is, indeed, mighty fierce.

And she has more than survived.

She has thrived.

Today, as Jumbuck walks assuredly through our grassless fields, the irony is not lost on us. For both she and the land were once victims of the merciless drought. And both, now nurtured by love, are rising—stronger, softer. Because that’s what becomes of beautiful things when held with tenderness.

Jumbuck no longer bolts as we approach. She listens—with her whole being. She remembers the voices that lifted her, the hands that steadied her, the love that cradled her.

And slowly—she is learning to trust.

Patchwork-hearted, but whole.

We look into her eyes—now clear and bright—and cannot help but wonder what she sees. We trust it’s all of the beautiful things.

Because in Jumbuck we find an enduring reminder: animals like her are not remnants.
They are not even things.
They are stories waiting to be heard.
Lives ready to bloom—if only someone says “Yes”.

When courage meets compassion, when we refuse to see species and instead see souls—beautiful things happen.

They happen in the muddy mire of once-vibrant riverbeds.
In calming outstretched hands and soft gentle voices.
In the quiet space between hesitation and action.

That sacred pause—when your head says “wait”, but your heart says “go”.

That is where beautiful things happen.

Go do the beautiful things.