What I love most about Haakon is the fact that he is exactly the same whether I have ridden him all year or 6 months ago.  He doesn’t forget. He knows what is required – standing still, waiting for me to say go, going in a vague outline, the same arguments but nothing challenging.

I feel safe and at home riding him.  We have been a team for over 17 years now.  Nothing changes.  In fact if he were “different”, I would worry that something was very wrong and he was ill.  I sometimes imagine calling the vet because “Haakon is being nice”.  To me that makes perfect sense.  I doubt the vet has ever been called out for those sort of symptoms!

I had a lovely ride today.  My second since the plaster came off.  Nothing strenuous.  We stayed indoors and never broke out of walk .  Everything was just the same as it always is.  Just how I like it.  I hate change.  It scares me.

Flossie, my younger daughter, has gone down for Christmas – how can you go down when you travel 824.5 miles upwards to come home?  She arrived yesterday after the mother and father of hellish journeys home.  I let her have yesterday afternoon as a holiday and today, she helped tack up the horses and took some photos for me.

We started with some ineffectual brushing.

BeAnne adopted her usual position and refused to be moved.

So I let her do a spot of riding too.  She always asks.

I ❤ my horse.  He is always the same and that is perfect for me.  We know each other very well.  I expect he thinks I am still the same too.