509 days ago

Unbroken Wings Authored by Glen McMillan

Glen from Central Whangarei

Unbroken Wings a girl named Lily.

Once upon a time, in the city of Whangarei, there lived an effervescent young girl named Lily. She was a talented ballet dancer, her agile movements embodying the artistry of her spirit. She was often seen dancing with the wind, her feet barely touching the ground, the city as her stage. But one fateful day, everything changed.


Lily was walking home late at night after a riveting ballet performance when an unexpected accident occurred. A reckless driver lost control of his vehicle, striking Lily before she could react. The next thing she remembered was the stark white ceiling of a hospital room. She had survived, but her spinal cord was severely damaged. The doctors gently broke the news: she would likely never dance again. Her world came crashing down around her. The stage she loved so dearly had been snatched away.

Days turned into weeks, then into months. Lily wrestled with depression, confined to her wheelchair, watching as the world moved on without her. Her dreams were shattered, her spirit broken. The city that once felt like a lively stage now loomed over her like a giant, unscalable wall.

One day, a man named Oscar moved into the house next to Lily's. He was a friendly, cheerful person who painted for a living despite being visually impaired. Oscar's unyielding spirit, despite his disability, ignited a spark of hope in Lily. She began to visit him, intrigued by his world of colours unseen.

Oscar, realizing Lily's pain mirrored his own, encouraged her to express herself again, not through dance, but through paint. Lily was hesitant at first; she thought she had lost all her artistic abilities. But Oscar insisted, "Art is not about the medium, Lily. It's about the soul that pours into it."

For the first time in months, Lily decided to give it a try. She picked up a brush, and as the colours danced on her canvas, she discovered a new way to express herself. With each stroke, she painted her emotions, her dreams, and her dance. The wheelchair didn't bind her; she was dancing again, just differently.

Lily's transformation was profound. She began to emerge from her shell of despair, reclaiming her life. Her paintings were heartfelt, filled with emotion that moved those who saw them. The city that once watched her dance was now captivated by her art.

In her struggle, Lily found a new purpose. Her life wasn't over; it had simply taken a different path. She missed dancing every day, but she found joy in her art, in the vibrancy of her paintings, in the dance of her brushstrokes. Her spirit, once crushed, now flew on unbroken wings.

She was no longer just Lily, the ballet dancer. She was Lily, the artist, the survivor, the beacon of hope. Through her journey, she discovered that while accidents can steal dreams, they can also give birth to new ones. Through her courage and resilience, she taught her city that while life can change in an instant, the spirit remains unbroken.

Authored by Glen McMillan

Please support our young disabled
www.childrenwithdisability.co.nz...

More messages from your neighbours
11 days ago

⚠️ DOGS DIE IN HOT CARS. If you love them, don't leave them. ⚠️

The Team from SPCA New Zealand

It's a message we share time and time again, and this year, we're calling on you to help us spread that message further.
Did you know that calls to SPCA about dogs left inside hot cars made up a whopping 11% of all welfare calls last summer? This is a completely preventable issue, and one which is causing hundreds of dogs (often loved pets) to suffer.
Here are some quick facts to share with the dog owners in your life:

👉 The temperature inside a car can heat to over 50°C in less than 15 minutes.
👉 Parking in the shade and cracking windows does little to help on a warm day. Dogs rely on panting to keep cool, which they can't do in a hot car.
👉 This puts dogs at a high risk of heatstroke - a serious condition for dogs, with a mortality rate between 39%-50%.
👉 It is an offence under the Animal Welfare Act to leave a dog in a hot vehicle if they are showing signs of heat stress. You can be fined, and prosecuted.
SPCA has created downloadable resources to help you spread the message even further. Posters, a flyer, and a social media tile can be downloaded from our website here: www.spca.nz...
We encourage you to use these - and ask your local businesses to display the posters if they can. Flyers can be kept in your car and handed out as needed.
This is a community problem, and one we cannot solve alone. Help us to prevent more tragedies this summer by sharing this post.
On behalf of the animals - thank you ❤️

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3 days ago

Poll: Would you rather: Christmas in summer forever or winter forever?

The Team from Neighbourly.co.nz

Just a bit of a fun poll to get you thinking.

If you had to live out your Christmas days, would you prefer it was a summer Christmas or a winter Christmas?

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Would you rather: Christmas in summer forever or winter forever?
  • 61.5% Summer
    61.5% Complete
  • 36.8% Winter
    36.8% Complete
  • 1.6% Other - I'll share below
    1.6% Complete
1048 votes
9 days ago

Would you like a free copy of our February 2025 issue?

Mei Leng Wong Reporter from NZ Gardener & Get Growing

Kia ora neighbours. We give away free copies to readers whose recipes are used in our magazine. We're still on the hunt for tomato recipes, so send your family's favourite way to use up your homegrown harvest, to: mailbox@nzgardener.co.nz. If we use it in the mag, you will receive a free copy of the mag

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