By Jessica Shannon
The Christmas spirit can be felt deeply at our barns. We bundle our horses up in their blankets, and try to keep soft beanies on our heads as we groom without a curious horse pulling them off and tossing them on the ground. The latter may be personal. Our barns aisles are decorated, the air is cold, and some of you live in climates where the pastures are blanketed in white snow.
Holidays bring memories, and as I wander through the barn and ride in chilly temperatures each year, I am reminded of years of Christmases with barn families.
We choose a barn for the trainer, the turnout, how healthy and happy the horses there seem, proximity to our home or work, and all aspects of the arena, from lighting to footing.
The hidden gift in each barn is the friendships we build. When my niece started riding, I told her the deepest friendships she’ll have in her life will be from the barn and church, because both of those places are full of a community of people united in something that has changed them and [hopefully] helps the best version of themselves shine. I have had the gift of being a part of some incredible barn families, and that’s been most apparent when one of us faces a major trial or during the holidays.
Christmas at my barn in middle and high school was full of giggles. We chose a few of the horses and had bareback relay races. Only one person was willing to join me on my horse, as my giant Thoroughbred was far from comfortable bareback. He had such a talent over fences, but his withers made it impossible to be on the winning team of an egg and spoon race. He may have been the fastest in the barn, but that wasn’t the best day for him to demonstrate his stride and speed. It added to the giggles though, and the love in our arena as we tagged each other in different relays, followed by sharing food, was impossible to miss.
Those days also allowed us to take a step back from working under saddle and reminding us of the importance of relaxing and enjoying our time with horses. I can feel the joy even now, decades later, while reflecting on our annual Christmas parties.
Other barns I’ve been blessed to be a part of had potlucks in the decorated barn aisle, or someone’s home, with everyone cherishing time where every rider was present at once for stress-free chats and sharing memories from the last year. Sometimes, you see your barn buddies with their hair down and in regular clothes for the first time.
How does your barn family celebrate holidays? What memories do you have from your childhood, teen, or college years at the barn at Christmas? It is often the gatherings out of the arena that help us appreciate the beautiful barn friendships we have built. When we take away cross tie chatter and daydreaming about our goals while cleaning our tack and put us all around a table full of pies and dips, we see what deep friendships we have built on the foundation of our magnificent horses.
Our barn families see us through some of the biggest highs and biggest
lows. They cheer us on and leave flowers on our tack trunks when life is hitting us a little too hard. They drive out to horse shows to support us, even when they aren’t showing, and they film our rides while sitting on their own horses.
Barn buddies are family, and when I reflect on some of my favorite Christmas memories, my barn family has as many moments ingrained in my heart as my own family. To all my barn families past and present, thank you for the conversations, the laughs, the shared dreams, the articles, videos, and memes sent back and forth, and the friendships rooted in an indescribable love for horses. May we all be grateful for the gift of our barn families this Christmas and always.