"The Christian fear of the Pagan outlook has damaged the whole consciousness of man" 

-D.H. Lawrence

D.H. Lawrence wrote one of my favorite stories, "The Rocking Horse Winner". It was published in the early 20th century and tells the tale of a young lad named Paul, whose parents are consumed with money at the impairment of their children. When Paul receives a rocking horse for Christmas, the horse soon becomes his best friend and constant companion and allows Paul to lose himself in the enjoyment of the ride. Subsequently, Paul believes his beloved horse can communicate with him, picking winners for the next horse race, tips Paul passes on to his uncle, a gambler. 

Paul's uncle shares a percentage of his winnings with Paul, who in turn hands the loot over to his greedy parents. Seeing that his parents are finally happy with their new wealth, Paul rides his horse harder and harder until one day, he doesn't awake from his trance and passes away.

D.H. Lawrence was an amazing writer with a fantastic imagination and I was so fortunate to listen to my friend Nova practice the telling of this tale over and over as my freshman lit class prepared for a Poetry and Prose competition. Of course, Nova won. Her "Rocking Horse" was a winner.

DeannalynnArzola