Memories conjured up by sound and scent.

There was a laneway next to the house where I grew up in regional Australia during the 1960s and 70s, that led down the back to an expansive area where racehorses were stabled.

Apart from going down to see them after school or on weekends, my most poignant memory of that time is the sound emanating from the laneway as the trainers led the horses out to either a waiting trailer, or most often to walk to the nearby racetrack situated at the end of our street.

“Clip clop, clip clop,” was a sound I remember to this day. It is comforting to recall that short, hollowed sound - it had a certain rhythm all of its own - and also the memory of those beautiful creatures and their majesty.

Image courtesy of the Equinest, but the mood captures me back then.

A few of us would often go down to the track on race days where the starting barriers were situated, generally at the opposite side to where the main building and grandstands were. Our front row seats were the old timber outer fences where we could watch the jostling as the jockeys gently coaxed their steeds into the tiny stalls.

Then we caught the thunderous sounds and sweated scent as these great animals roared past once, twice or three times. We weren’t as interested in which of them won - why would we be when we already had the thrill of seeing and feeling their greatness just as they were.

Memories such as these can serve as a comfort in difficult times. They can calm our inner selves and conjure up sounds, images and even smells from forgotten periods; times when life was much simpler than what we live in today.

I love horses, but sadly, they didn’t find a place in my future, grown up life.