Whilst Facebook and Instagram enable us to keep in touch with friends and family across the globe, these addictive platforms also have a downside. They can easily inspire feelings of inadequacy. You know what it's like, you think that your holiday in Turkey was rather excellent until you see your cousin's snaps of the paradise they enjoyed at their exclusive resort in the Caribbean. You think that you look pretty fabulous until you stumble across your friend's latest selfie in which they look like a supermodel.
Equestrian Perfection
Why is it that other people seem to live such idyllic lives and always manage to look so utterly fabulous? The issue extends to life at the stable too. Why does your aunt's horse always appear to be totally immaculate and her stall pristine when your horse looks like they have walked through a swamp and your muck heap is out of control?It's time to face up to the fact that busy people do not have the time to be perfect! If you work, have a family and ride then time is always at a premium. You only have so many hours in the day and compromise is inevitable. Anyway, everyone guilds the lily with their Facebook and Instagram posts. The pictures might look amazing but the reality could be something else entirely.
Appearance and Reality
That wonderful Caribbean resort could be next to a construction site and your supermodel friend might look a lot less than perfect most of the time and had just had a professional makeup job for a special event before they took that selfie. Your aunt's pristine horse had probably just been groomed and looked amazing for all of 10 minutes before he rolled in mud and turned into the creature from the black lagoon!If you own or loan a horse, you face incredible demands on your time. It is hard enough to fit in everything that you need to do whilst finding enough opportunities to jump into the saddle. The weather always seems to be working overtime to prevent you riding and other issues happen - a lot!
Relax and Enjoy!
There's no point trying to be perfect. Spending time with your horse should be a joy and it is important to maximise your enjoyment of riding. You must attend to your horses needs but they don't need perfect braids every day. Sometimes the muck heap can wait and a messy tack room isn't going to kill anyone. It's all too easy to be seduced by images of perfection and then to feel that you are failing! But you aren't! Perfection is riding out on a bright sunny day and building a relationship with your horse not creating an immaculate plait and looking like a movie star. Life's too short and you have so much riding to fit into so few hours!