Rosette For Bravery.

Today Small and I went to a horse show with a great friend of mine Janey. She has two delightful children who have competed for years and we went both to cheer them on in their classes, and secretly, to get Small to jump a small (very small) set of jumps.

Small had a very bad fall of the Gentleman Jed a couple of weeks ago and it has taken alot of bravery from her and patience and persuading from me to build up her confidence again.
I knew that by introducing Small to riding she would have bad falls. Its a very different matter knowing and experancing it.
I have never moved so fast after her and The Gentleman shouting " sit up" and "hold on" and "he will stop at the gate" when he suddenly ran as fast as his little legs could take him towards the gate when she was riding in the field. I have never been so pleased when I heard her squeel after she had hit the ground. And to watch her trying to get up of the floor was a beautiful thing to see. And she got back on again. Bless her.

Anyway, alot of confidence was lost in that couple of minutes of terror, and today Janey and I thought we would help that along a bit.
Her youngest daughter has a pony called The Mule that is worth her weight in gold. She was riden around a 2 foot 6 high course with panache and flair and finnished 3rd. I was amazed at this, The Mule is usually very quiet and careful, but she fairly flew around in the jump off with Janeys daughter riding her beautifully.
Then Small got on. She rides like she is, a very basic beginner. She has jumped, or rather stepped over poles but never riden a course. With Janey's daughter running beside her and The Mule watching where she put every foot Small went very slowly round a very small set of jumps.
Everyone cheered when they finished. Even people we didnt know, as it was obvious that it was Smalls first time, and everyone "ahhhhed" at The Mule as she so carefully and lovingly took her round.

Small nearly popped! She was so proud of herself and so full of it she went back in for another go!!...in which she was much better and actually rode, rather than just sat!

Small now has two rosettes, one for each round. And cant stop grinning. And telling anyone who will listen all about it. It gave her the bravery injection that she really needed, and is now talking about doing what she did today on The Gentleman. Which he will really love too.

Its been a good day!!!


lybxx

Sympathy?

Because I went to Granny's funeral a couple of days ago, and have thought about it alot I thought I would do a little test.

I taught Small basic first aid a couple of years ago and she has always (since she could talk....so from about 3 months old!) known her address and phone number...I am very concious about this because I once saw on the news a 10 year old that didnt know where she lived or her phone number......at 10!!!! ...hence the drilling into Small.

She knows what to do in a very basic way in a first aid emergancy, and we have often practised. She likes the whole thing, it makes her feel important and although she doesnt know the word, it empowers her.

So, the other day I thought I would put her to the test.
We were waiting outside school in the car. We were talking about 'stuff'. Suddenly I flopped sideways with my eyes shut.
Nothing.
So I gurgled a bit.
Nothing.
Hmmmmmm.........
I waited.
Then, my beautiful kind and thoughtful daughter.....did I say she was the 'light-of-my-life?'
said
"Dead eh??"
And punched me three times on the arm!!!!!



I dont want this Small. I want a new one!!!!!!


lybxx

Granny-Cadgeing

Today was my Grandmothers funeral.

She had been in hospital for a while and quietly slipped away last week. She was a formidable woman. Small in Stature but Big in Personalility. I have a very big family with lots of uncles and cousins and it was no surprise that we all met today, from all round the country, and some traveling by plane from abroad to be gathered to pay our respects to her.

There are lots of things I could say about her, and lots of stories to tell.

She came across to some as scarey and fearse. The village garage, when her and my grandfather used to go in would jump to their feet and go and fill their car. My family has been in that village since time began and are well known. They used to greet my grandfather with smiles and handshakes "John Arnold" they used to greet him. To my granny they used to visably quake and nod their heads respectfully and say " Mrs Taylor". ...I saw this once and thought it very strange. I asked granny about it, why they didnt call her by her first name too....she just twinkled her eyes at me and grinned.
We used to go and see her, we are from good farming stock and they lived on the farm too. We used, my brothers and I, to call it "Granny Cadgeing". My twin and I were much better at it than Hugh, and used to come back with our pockets full of chocolate and loose change.
I now dont doubt for a minute that she knew exactly what we were doing, but she loved her grandchildren enormously and would do anything for us.....including playing along with the Granny-Cadgeing!

She was married for 60 years to a man who broke the mould when he was born. To see him aged 92 sat with his heart broken in church looking at her coffin was dreadful. He didnt sing or take part in the service visably at all, until the final hymn All things Bright And Beautiful.
Then he sung his broken heart out.
At the grave side I had to look away from him. It was more than I could bear to see.

I am very lucky. To have been given the remarkable grandparents I have, with the high morals and values that they all four shared, mixed equally with twinkley eyes, strength, humour and love that they all gave to my parents, to me and my brothers and all my cousins has been a backbone for the strength I have needed to find at various parts of my life. Not saying that anything I have ever experianced comes anything close to the strength that I witnessed today.


lybxx

Him next door.

Sorry for not keeping the posts up to date, but I have been doing alot of thinking rather than writting over the last couple of weeks, and although not entirely sure that things are clearer in my head, they are clear enough to tell you about my next door neighbour.

He is old. (they all are!) He should be about 6'2 but walks bent over and he shuffles rather than walks. He is a little hard of hearing and dribbles a bit from the right side of his mouth.

Last week when I was getting the bin in, he cheerly said "hello" (they all do!) and waved (they all do that as well!) and I stopped to pass the time of day with him. His daughter visits him everyday on her bicycle, so cant live far and you can hear then chattering and laughing, and they always give each other an enormous hug when she leaves.
Anyway, there was clearly something bothering him. He made several attempts to say something but was hesitant and clearly embarressed. He commented on my garden which he had peeked at the other day when my gate was open, and congratulated me on the hard work I had put into it. He had listened, he told me, to Laa-Laa and myself weed and move the enormous planter with much swearing and grunting, with much amusement. He had watched me carry into the garden the pots and plants I had bought and had wondered where I was putting things and what they looked like. He told me that before he lived next door he had had a huge garden with a pond and prize winning chrysanthemums which he had shown anually.

I was a little worried as to what this was all leading to. Was Stinky doing her 'I'm bored so I'll bark' thing when I was out? Had one of the cats been using his garden as a loo? Had the music I had been playing been on too loud?

No, the reason he wanted to say something was that he had been worried that I hadnt been shutting my gate properly. The gate is on the side of my garden there is then a path that leads out beside the garage, he uses the same path to get out of his garden.
He had worried, apparently, everytime he went out of his garden that I hadnt bolted the gate at the bottom as well as the top, and if I hadnt bolted the gate, he was worried that someone would break in, and steal something.

I could have hugged him. My grandfathers would have had the same concerns had they been living next door, he was so apologetic about saying something, but it had concerned him so much he had to.

I am very lucky to live where I do. I can hear the church bells clearly when they practise on a thursday evening, and again on sunday mornings. There is an organic shop just round the corner. It is a lovely house. We are happy here. And now I have an admittedly frail but friendly and gentlemanly (in every sence of the word) next door neighbour.


lybxx