Renewal: Returning to the Original You
Have you ever found pleasure in something ordinary? For me, it’s the pleasure of the original meaning of words.
The word “renewal” comes from the Old French “renoveler” and the Latin “renovare,” meaning “to make new again.” At its heart, renewal is not about becoming someone different. It’s about returning to what was always there: the truest, most unbroken version of you.
Renewal is a call to restoration. It is the process of stripping away the layers of fear, shame, and experience that have clouded your self-perception. Life has a way of leaving marks, right? It’s the criticism that lingers, the failures that bruise, or the relationships that distort how we see ourselves. Over time, we start to confuse the scars with our identity. Renewal is the gentle, sometimes painful, work of remembering: I was whole before the world told me otherwise. Sis, restoration is coming back to who you were created to be.
Imagine for a moment what it would mean to see yourself without the filter of negativity. To look in the mirror and not hear the echo of past mistakes. To carry your ambitions without the weight of “not enough.” Renewal invites you into that space - not by pretending the pain never happened, but by refusing to let it be the final word.
Renewal is often tied to water - baptism, cleansing, the washing away of the old. It symbolises the chance to begin again, to step into life with the freshness of original intent. For us, that might look like reclaiming the confidence we had before we were told to shrink, or rediscovering joy before worry became the loudest voice. It’s poetic to think that Joburg’s beautiful spring seasons are highlighted by magnificent storms and rain - not only is the coming of warmer weather indicative of new life, but the rain is a symbol of cleansing.
Renewal is not a denial of your journey. It is a re-centering. A return to your original state of dignity, possibility, and worth. The truest version of you is not broken or sullied. She is waiting beneath the noise, ready to be seen again.