Memories

I’M always slightly wary of looking back at “the good old days” with rose-tinted glasses, forgetting all that was worse. But like daydreams, there is something so comforting in reminiscing over happy days that is good for our minds and souls, and that is why this issue is a real favourite.

During lockdown, many readers spent days in their attics, happening upon photographs and rosettes that sparked great memories, and sharing those with their friends. We wanted to share them with the whole equestrian community, and so we created our first readers’ nostalgia issue.

H&H features editor Martha Terry was inundated with correspondence of the very best kind. From memories of taking horses on trains, string girths – and string gloves – to seeing our heroes for the first time, and all the good that horses bring to riders’ lives, there is so much heartfelt emotion in these pages it is utterly joyful.

While we revel in all that was wonderful about our equestrian youths, it is heartbreaking to understand the detrimental impact of Riding for the Disabled Association (RDA) centres’ temporary closure, both in terms of participants’ physical and mental health (news, p12), including children and adults.

These findings reiterate what we have long appreciated – how significant the effect of the RDA’s work is on those who benefit. Volunteers, too, have rued the loss of social interaction and the joy associated with helping others, again highlighting the positives the RDA’s work bring.

If any good can come of this, I hope it is a wider appreciation of how much we’ve lost by not having RDA centres in action, and how much we need them.