Variety is the spice of life, so they say.

In the many months of lockdown in the UK in 2020 / 2021, there weren’t so many activities to choose from. Retail, leisure, and entertainment industries were all closed. We were restricted in how far we could travel, and who we could meet with. In some ways, the variety we’ve been used to in our lives had been taken away from us.

And yet, it became apparent to me just how many levels there can be to variety. Could we put more variety into what we ate, or what we listened to, or what we watched? The more creative amongst us shared fantastic ideas on social media to help keep the young ones entertained.

I think sometimes, the deeper we look into something, the more interesting it becomes. Certainly that’s how what I’ve found in my studies. And so I found it both challenging and interesting working out how to put variety into having to walk from home each day. There are no footpaths from my house that we could reach within the allotted time. I had three young children to entertain and a dog to exercise. Around the same estate day in, day out. We did treasure hunts, making maps, posting letters, drawing hopscotch on the pavement with chalk, and more.

We put variety into making use of my small back garden. The children invented multiple games involving the climbing frame. I researched science experiments that we could do together. We toasted marshmallows, and did the gardening. I am very grateful of course that I had the time available to do this, I know not everyone did.

My point, in terms of happiness, is that we don’t do well if we’re doing the same thing day in day out. But even if it feels as though we are stuck in a rut, we might be able to make small changes to create some level of variety. We all need something to look forward to. No one thrives on Groundhog Day.

So if you’re feeling low, look around you and see if you can create some level of variety to spice up your life and promote happiness.

© Sue Palmer, The Horse Physio 2021

Treating your horse with care, connection, curiosity and compassion