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This kitchen is missing something, we need a dog. My mind drifts to having something like a Labrador bustling around my feet at moments like this, someone who is always pleased to see me. It’s that sort of thought that crosses my mind at goodness knows what time in the morning. Yes, a loyal companion. I smile to myself and resolve to speak to Kate about it as I fill the kettle, switching it on. The Aga is warm, and as the moonlight glistens on the water in the bay through the window, you could say I have found perfection, all I need is a brew, and my morning will be just perfect.
I sit quietly and watch the sunrise, sipping warm tea, the gradual washing of colour across the fields and the bay beyond. I don’t care how many times I see it; the sunrise is still something that both calms me and, conversely fills me with excitement. It presents the promise of another new day, one filled with opportunity and chance. Even if that day is spent on mundane tasks, when you spend it with friends and family it is certainly a day well spent.
I think of the yard, our yard. Kate and I have found our heaven, open countryside and horses. She, like me, is a natural horse person, happiest in the saddle or around horses. It’s in our blood and we couldn’t live without the animals we love. I look up as I hear a sound behind me.
“Ah, you’re awake.”
“Apparently.” Kate yawns, reaching for the kettle. “You stole the duvet…”
“I stole? … Okay, I’m sorry… In future, I’ll make sure you’re properly covered.”
We fall into small talk about the day ahead, as always midweek is usually relatively quiet. Today we have the farrier due and there are always tasks to be completed which will naturally keep us busy till sundown. Of course, we are ably supported in our ventures by our grooms who work tirelessly without complaint and, without whom, we couldn’t run the equestrian centre. The girls are our staff; however, we often end up acting more like mother and father to an extended family. Resolving squabbles, ensuring they eat a healthy diet and being there when they have a bad day. It’s all a big, mostly happy family with our staff, horses and customers. Kate and I work hard to try to keep it that way.
“Come on then, we can get a start on feeding before the girls come down…” I slide on my wellingtons and open the farmhouse door, taking a moment to enjoy the sight of our yard. With a horseshoe of brick stables directly opposite, and at the near end the stairs going up to the grooms flat above the stable block. To the right is the feed shed and barns behind which we have both a sizable indoor arena and outdoor menage. Looking down the slight hill leads to the most perfect view across Morecambe Bay with the railway line bordering our land before the short crossing towards Arnside.
“Ready?” Kate smiles, pulling on her coat as we step out onto the yard.
There is nothing better in the world than stepping out on a crisp autumn morning where the only sound is of your horses and bird song from the last of the dawn chorus. It’s even too early for the sounds of our grooms who will soon be cheerfully bustling around feeding the horses before mucking out and sweeping down the yards.
This is the moment of calm before the activity of the day starts and it is, without a doubt my favourite part of the day. Kate opens the feed shed door. We have been highly efficient and laid out the morning feeds in stacks along the wall. Each bucket with a horse’s name painted on it. I grab a stack as does Kate and we step onto the yard, starting with the kickers, those noisy horses who seem not to be able to wait just one more moment before knocking their stable about. Soon we have fed all of the horses and relative calm returns to the stable yard.
Judith and Emily come down the stairs from the staff flat. They were working pupils when my sister owned the yard and had been with us through some frightening times. We’d promoted them to fully paid grooms just before Kate and I’d got married and now they were both completing their examinations to become riding instructors and coaches just like we were. They were joined by our newest member of staff, the beautiful Caroline. She was a young nineteen and had qualified at college which had given her considerable knowledge and the ability to coach our riding school pupils, however, had left her with less of the more practical skills the grooms who had spent their time on commercial yards possessed. However, with her friendly manner and willingness to work hard she had become a welcome part of our stable’s family.
The three of them could quickly muck out the stables, honestly, I still felt a little guilty that I wasn’t doing some more of the hard work, however, as Kate often reminded me, they had a way of doing things and I was more often a hindrance to their smooth running of what they saw as their yard. The benefit was, as this was a quiet day, I could spend some time exercising some of the horses and, in particular my new gelding Steel Secret, better known as Oscar when he was not in the show ring.
Kate had encouraged me to purchase Oscar as a potential showjumping horse and my sister Amanda had agreed when I’d called her for
