The Year of the Horse 2026
written by: Sterling Warner
January 1, 2026, the Chinese Year of the Horse—
fortified with vitality, independence, perseverance—
rocks with resolutions and songs of remorse 364
days in the past as well as comforting lyrics steeped
in nostalgia’s grace in days of “Auld Lang Syne.”
Sing out young daughters and revolutionary sons,
declare allegiance to ephemeral lines that frame
distant cumulous clouds floating like spun cotton
skyway water reserves hanging heavy, an ever
moving silhouette marked by a shimmering halo.
Party hats, liquor bottles and broken glasses
litter the Alderbrook Resort & Spa outdoor tables,
chairs, firepits and boating docks at dawn as celebrants
nurse hangovers and attempt to reconstruct memories
lost in a haze of questionable midnight behavior.
Some rise in beds next to naked strangers
who shared one too many “cups of kindness”
the night before, relaxing New Year morals
toasting transient moments, reiterating commitment
to lifelong dreams, spouting twisted beatitudes.
Reembracing familiar virtues, some couples
tattoo frosty windows with loving testimonies
renewing vows, confessing transgressions
laughing, crying, wishing for a future unaltered
by time’s decay, untouched by human dementia.
- The Year of the Horse 2026 - January 20, 2026
- Carnival Charity - July 9, 2025
- Dia de los Muertos - November 1, 2024
