Friday August 12th
Dearest Parents of Pony Farm and other “Farm Friends”,
Where does the week go???? I guess the saying that ‘Time flies when you are having fun” is truly true! I can not believe this week is nearly over and some of the kids are leaving us. It has been a power packed week for sure as these kids wanted to do everything that could be jammed into one week. They are an enthusiastic bunch for sure….Good kids all!
Before I get in to what we have been doing, let me just reiterate the plan for pick up tomorrow. First, let me assure those of you whose children are staying with us for another week that you do NOT have to come to this Parents’ Exhibition and Picnic. We will do the same thing next week for you. Also, if your child has struggled a bit with homesickness, we actually encourage you not to come so that we don’t start all over again with missing you. We have triumphed with all three kids that were homesick and they are all smiles. We are eager to keep it that way and to make this a total success for each of these kids. They are mighty proud of themselves for getting over being homesick and having a blast at camp.
However, if you are picking up your camper after her one week stay, come between 9:30 and 10AM. Come to the lodge. Becky and I will be there to greet you. You can load up your child’s things into the car and then we will direct you to the ring where she will be warming up. The first part of the demo will be what the group has worked on for the week. The Counselors-in-Training will conduct the lesson and run the riders through their paces. The Lead Instructor will talk with you to give you an overview of what each girl has learned and what is coming up next. We hope you like this informational demo.
The girls will then go to their Specialties. Each rider has chosen a favorite riding event to show you. These are the fun ones, with some mixed groups doing the demos. It is a fun thing to watch. This will be followed with the girls feeding their ponies and saying their goodbyes. We will then all go up to the lodge and have a picnic on the front lawn, as it is supposed to be a spectacular day. Please bring food for your family, and we will provide the refreshments and desserts. This is a great time to talk to the counselors about your child’s stay. It is a lovely way to end the session. I look forward to greeting you!
Now, I will pick up where Becky left off…On Wednesday night, the girls had a Fashion Show. For some reason un-be known to me, they love this! They are given different decades and have to mix & match to come up with outfits that would have been typical of that decade. They are such characters and “hams”….They strut down the ‘red carpet’ and just love it. It is a fun thing to watch and lots of cheering takes place. They ended the evening with Vespers and some singing around the birch log with candles, and quietly went off to bed.
On Thursday, they had lots of practicing for the Exhibition for YOU! They had both a riding lesson and practiced their Specialties. The girls sure get a lot of exercise in a day around here and sleep well at night. For evening activities, they had the Ice Cream Trough, which is a huge ice cream sundae where everyone eats at the same time….It is truly a spectator sport! They then went on the much hyped up “Snipe Hunt” with peanut butter on their noses and fingers. They were so intent on getting a snipe to bring home that several girls also built elaborate ‘traps’ as they thought that their fellow campers were making so much noise that the snipes got scared away. They were convinced that they would catch one in their traps! I had helped with the story as I had said that they could put any snipes they caught in the Banty House until you arrived so they could ask your permission to bring them home! What a great camp tradition!!!
Fourteen campers and accompanying staff were dying to also camp out…but wanted to do the Trough and the Snipe Hunt too…so, the compromise was made that they would camp out on the lawn at the Homestead, just like the early settlers….as the Homestead was built in 1754! So, in four tents, and under a full moon shining across the fields of Pony Farm, camp out they did. They were psyched to watch the small animals from the doors of their tents. They also felt special as they got to go on an early morning swim…in their clothes no less, as they did not bring bathing suits! A good time was had by all.
Today dawned glorious and it was the long awaited day to swim with the horses. We have not been able to do this for the last three years due to an infestation of ‘blue green’ algae in the pond here on the farm which we had used for years. I set about finding an alternative place for this year as it was such an all camp favorite. We have been using this wonderful pond all summer on a local farm which has luckily been put into a conservation easement. They are delighted to have us use the pond and love the idea of kids enjoying the property. What a ‘win win’ for everyone.
We divided the kids into two groups so no one had to wait too long to swim. The group who stayed home started their packing and then cleaned their tack. We had been so busy that we had not done any tack cleaning all week! They will switch in the afternoon. During Rest Hour, they will write their Candlelight Ceremony reflection in preparation for our closing ceremony tonight. We will get all dressed up, gather around the fire circle and have a nice ending to our time together. This is one of my favorite times at camp as all the girls look so beautiful in their special outfits and with their shining faces. The turkey dinner we share is pretty awesome too!
Tomorrow will dawn and you will come, marking an end to our time together. I can not believe it is nearly the end of this camp season…Only one week remains. Wow, not only did this summer fly by, but so did the 40th summer of Pony Farm fly by. Where did these 40 years of fun go???? It is exciting to continue building Touchstone Farm and make the transition to having Touchstone, as a not for profit, work toward owning the farm. It is my heart’s desire to have Pony Farm and all the many programs go on long after I am “pushing up daisies”. So, here’s to at least another 40 years of Pony Farm and great kids like yours being here to enjoy ponies, Snipe Hunts, swimming with the ponies and enjoying a farm. It makes me smile just thinking of it all. See you tomorrow to enjoy the progress your girls have made on their ponies.
Most warmly, Boo!!!
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