Sitting amongst the trees, feeling the weather warming up as the sun sizzles your skin, laughing with your friend over your catch up is one of the best feelings in the world. A picnic day is sometimes the cure one needs for mental stress or a wave of sadness.

It’s even better when there are lazy horses grazing in the background, swishing their tails to get rid of flies and little, loud snorts every now and then to remind you of their presence. My friend and I had organised a picnic last week Sunday and it was one of the best ideas ever. It had been so long since I had had one and I am so grateful we set one up.

It was a girl’s day, with great snacks, laughter, a camera and naughty horses trying to steal our picnic food. I used my mother’s beautiful gold and black picnic blanket that was gifted to her many years ago, and we used normal shopping bags to haul everything to our picnic spot which was in my horses’ paddock. Specifically under the trees, the small woodsy area which is near their water trough, so that we weren’t cooked alive under the strong African sun.

We indulged in some fruit, berries such as grapes, strawberries and blueberries, some salty crackers and dip, mini sandwiches, a pasta salad, a croissant each, delicious home-made bran muffins and my favourite thing in the world; chocolate finger sponges, from Woolworths Food. We slowly ate away our picnic while talking about life, love, relationships, work and everything else that we wanted to talk about, in between our mini photo shoots of course.

It was such a peaceful and delightful day and the snacks were honestly so refreshing and fulfilling that I didn’t even have any dinner. I directed my friend to playfully bite into a strawberry so I could capture a cute photo, and she was so giggly and awkward that the photos turned out to be naturally sweet and funny.

Photoshoots are on the top of my hobby list. I could spend all day taking photos of friends and with friends, to help boost theirs and my confidence, to capture memories in our youth and to overall feel good about myself. I remind myself often that I am not getting any younger, and nothing in this world is permanent and every day I am changing and getting wiser, so I may as well take the photos that I want to take.

My friend had bought an entire bag of outfit changes and her enthusiasm regarding the photoshoot meant the world to me. It’s rare these days to find someone willing to go out of their comfort zone for your sake, and I am grateful that she did, because in the end she loved some of the results of the photos.

We ended up only taking photos in two different outfits, one in shorts and a top, and one in a dress each. Turns out there is never enough time in the day to get around to do everything that you want to do or need to do, but it doesn’t mean we can’t have another photoshoot again.

My horses all the while we were on the blanket soaking up the joy and peace, kept attempting to interrupt and try steal our food. I tried my best to shoo them away but they are immune to my disciplinary and antics. I eventually tried to keep them in the ring, but Phantom ended up simply walking through and snapping the white tape to get out! She was so naughty that Sunday. I was humiliated.

It turned out to be a funny memory. Now we can look back and laugh at how my naughty horse decided to break free from her training ring to simply come back to our picnic spot and try her luck with berries again.

It was a lovely afternoon, a taste of what Spring and Summer have install for me and my friends. I was completely grateful for the warm weather to be able to host a mini picnic and photoshoot. I just know summer will be even better and I will appreciate it more this year seeing as I had to survive the winter of my country for the first time in five years.

If ever you are bored and want to do something fun yet simple with your friends, I recommend a picnic. It’s fairly cheap, especially if you prepare most of the snacks at home and an easy way to hang out in a lazy yet productive way, and you can throw in taking a few pictures here and there if you wish.

I know I will definitely be having another picnic in Spring soon, but maybe not in my naughty horses’ paddock this time!