W.C Fields once famously said ‘never work with children or animal’s. Admittedly he was an actor born in the late 1800s, but the sane of you out there will realise he had a very good point. That being said, as we’ve already discovered sanity doesn’t really come into the equation where equestrians are involved, and frankly THANK GOD. I really can’t think of anything worse than being considered ‘normal’; not far behind ‘normal’ we can find his friends ‘Dull’ and ‘Average’ – thanks but I’ll pass.
The only problem with this sort of attitude is that you will inevitably have your heart broken. Many. Many. Times. But let’s turn this on its head: while hearts will be broken, and tears will be shed, those tears are not necessarily always ones of sadness.
When you are deeply invested in something – horses, sport, you name it – intense emotions are inevitable. Therefore, while of course there will be trying times it is equally inevitable that you will also visit the other end of the emotional spectrum: joy, elation, relief, pride – the list is endless.
If you’re involved in horses you’ll become well acquainted with both ends of this spectrum, and at times you will undoubtedly question life, the universe and why you put up with the most frustrating, unpredictable animals on the planet. But the answer is simple: when horses put you at the ‘Elation’ end of the spectrum you can forget Cloud 9…you’re somewhere up there on Cloud 99. And it’s those moments, no matter how brief or seemingly inconsequential, that make it all worthwhile.
