The Sportinglife

We said a very fond farewell  to my dear Brother today.  The weather was quite kind being that the strong Easterly wind which was forecast did not come to pass and as a small gathering of family only stood by the graveside in Upper Lambourn Cemetery just a few soft snowflakes fell from the sky, the Vicar said nice words and a Robin sang his little heart out.  My Brother will be at ease in his final resting place with views of the rolling Berkshire Downs dotted with a maze of racing gallops - the last 40 years of his working life, after being a Cavalry man, was spent as the Jockey Club’s chief Steeplechase Handicapper.

My Brother was a great supporter of the Injured Jockey’s Association and Injured Jockeys’ Fund and friends and family had a lovely lunch at Oaksey House and afterwards we walked to the Thanksgiving service at St. Michael’s Church in Lambourn.  My brother was ever the Gentleman’s Gentlemen, a wonderful family man, husband, father and grandfather and loved by many, which was evident by the huge number of people in the church – around 400.

 During the Thanksgiving Service there were many tributes to my Brother and beautiful readings by friends and family - the following reading was one of my favourites and most appropriate as he loved his garden:

God looked around his garden and found an empty place,
He then looked down upon the earth and saw your tired face,
He put his arms around you and lifted you to rest,
God's garden must be beautiful, he only takes the best.

He knew that you were suffering, he knew you were in pain.
He knew that in heaven you would never be hurt again.
He saw the road was getting rough
and the hills were hard to climb
so he closed your weary eyelids and whispered,
Peace by thine.

It broke our hearts to lose you but you didn't go alone,
For part of us went with you the day God called you home.


You never plan to move very fast by car in Lambourn which as you enter has a sign saying  ‘the Home of the Horse’ and the roads are usually adorned with strings of Racehorses out on exercise and dogs being walked, hence my Blip.

Snowdrops in the Churchyard in Extra.