We spend hours in the mountains. We ride to a clearing and sit amongst trees where the dappled sunlight feels too beautiful to be true and gentle leaves fall from the trees so subtly it’s like the forest is breathing. We pass by local dogs who sniff always a little too close. We (read: I) lose my hat... more than once, Lex Duff writes.

Olivia Pirie-Griffiths writes , ‘this is also simply an argument for all of us - beyond our food preferences – to revel in our animal, carnal urges, and to honour them. 

In a world of AI deep fakes, polarisation, disassociation, over-curation and self-alteration, aren’t you yearning for something ancient and real?’

The final element of the Year of the Horse and what it represents is freedom, the most subjective of all travel currencies, the concept is inherently ambiguous. However, on reflection for me, what made this wonder the most spectacular was that over those eight hours or so, spent incredibly alone, there was a genuine sense of freedom and liberation that is extraordinarily hard to come by, at least for me, writes Evan England.

Psychologist Susie Kindred says, ‘Ask yourself now - Can you think of an act of freedom, courage or adventure in your life that didn’t involve uncertainty, risk or the possibility of getting it wrong?’
No one wakes up and feels ready to go. No body feels totally confident with zero anxiety before big events. It’s not how it works.

A dirt road opens up and the horses begin to pick up speed. As they hammer their hooves, pounding the ground, space opens up and time stands still. The bond between animal and human is unparalleled. In the driver’s seat you must be bold, letting momentum and possibility build with each stride. Courage is key – requiring full trust in their power, eyesight and agility, hoping they stay the course and don’t stumble or spook as you fly along at full pelt. A puff of dust is all that’s left in your wake. Eventually, the stretch of road ends and so does the fun of the gallop, writes Pip Dossetor.

Karnie is my biggest fan (in life and on Instagram) and dutifully replied to every photo I shared of my Paris trip with the enthusiasm only a devoted parent could muster for something as generic as an image of my cream-topped chocolat chaud. We had long ago resolved to go to Paris together again, and the guilt I’d felt at leaving the girls at Lyon airport was compounded by the thought of her working long hours in a Glasgow nursery while I was lapping up the last vestiges of summer in Paris. I resolved to take her - and soon, writes Eilidh Tuckett.

The Year of the Horse carries with it a promise of movement, rapid transformation and intense energy, qualities that gallop through the work of Job Cherdchay. A creative director and photographer currently based in London, Job’s practice moves between image, space, and story, inviting audiences into experiences that feel intimate and visceral. Tracing a recent journey through Rio de Janeiro and across cultures, Job brings us into the intimate ritual of shared meals through his supper club, writes Ahmad Al-Dabagh.

Francesca Giacco writes, ‘a lot of young girls love horses, and it’s not hard to see why. Riding a horse has the whisper of freedom, a connection with a beautiful animal that, even when tamed, has the potential to be wild. To be in sync with that kind of power, as a girl particularly, is narcotic.’

After a few years of massive personal and professional change—building a life in a new country, starting (and later stopping) medical school, and moving across the Atlantic—I started over, in every sense of the word.

New home, new career opportunities, new city, new continent, writes Carinne Geil Botta.