“Was I Ever in the Saddle?”

My son has been having some setbacks in life. Slowly but surely he has begun to find his way again. I remarked to him that soon he would be back in the saddle. He asked me, “Was I ever in the saddle?” The last three years have been so traumatic that he literally doesn’t remember when he was okay. I have a big supporting role in his life right now but one of the most important jobs I have is to remind him of better times, of what he is capable of, that he was once a great rider.

What does it mean to be back in the saddle? It is a return. Why were we gone? Was it a failure? A loss? An intentional break? Often times the subtext of this phrase is a setback. There needs to be some recovery time before returning to whatever it is. I would add that there is mourning attached to this break. It can be scary to move forward after a setback.

Sometimes we need someone to remind us of our riding days. The wind in our hair. Lucky for my son, I will be there when he is ready, to give him a boost. And he will ride again.