The Last Day of School

Traditionally the first day of school at Holden happens the day after Labor Day. I was remembering how this year there were actually three first days of school. The village had been evacuated last August because of a forest fire. When it was time for school to start, there were no students or teachers and only about 20 staff members in the village. So the first first day of school was held in a building in Chelan, set aside by the Chelan school district. After about 10 days, many of the staff, including the students and teachers were allowed back in the village. Here they had the second first day of school. However not all the students were here yet. The boarding students had not arrived, nor had a couple other students who had gone to Minnesota with their mother for the duration of the evacuation. So when they arrived, we celebrated the third first day of school. This was the traditional first day celebration with all kinds of kooky costumes and scenarios happening along the road to school.

But, I digress. This story is about the last day of school. Today was officially the last day of school for the 2007-2008 school year. The day started out with many of us congregating at the school, forming a line from the elementary room to the high school room to congratulate Joseph for graduating from sixth grade. As he walked along the line, we all gave him a token gift to help him move on up to seventh grade. He was cool about it, but had a huge grin on his face the whole time as his arms filled up with the gifts.

Tomorrow is graduation day for our high school senior, John, who is one of our boarding students this year. In the state of Washington, high school seniors are required to have a senior project. John chose to study sustainable farming and as part of his project he led the kitchen staff in preparing a fabulous dinner tonight. It consisted of ham, mashed roots (potatoes, sweet potatoes, carrots), and steamed spinach. There was also a wonderful dessert with meringue, berries, and whipped cream. Most of the food came from local farms in the Chelan area. Later this evening he did a presentation of what he had learned in his research. Since the subject matter is so huge, he concentrated on talking about beef. He presented some very interesting facts he had researched about grass fed beef versus feed lot beef.

So school is out for the summer and it is time for a few of the students to leave Holden. Besides John, our other boarding student, Stephan, will be leaving, as well as Thomas and Rachel, whose family has finished their long term stay here. By the end of next week they will be off to other places and other friends in their life journeys. But the Holden experience will always be with them. It's a great place to go to school and the old adage, "it takes a village," really applies here as so many villagers help with teaching and working with the kids.
The custodian from the school district is here this weekend to close down the school for the summer. During the summer the building is turned into Narnia where our summer children's programs happen. We have some really good, caring young adults to lead this program and the miners, jr. miners program (for high school and jr. high school ages) this summer. It should be a lot of fun.

But the summer is short and by Labor Day the school will be rearranged again and we'll be ready for another first day of school.

Bike Ride

Yesterday was a perfect day for a bike ride. Debi, Wanda and I took off on our bikes about 10:15 a.m. for a ride to Lake Chelan. We rode about 9 miles to the top of the switchbacks and were picked up by the bus about 11:10 for the rest of the trip down. (The switchbacks are steep and are about 2 miles long and we didn't want to take a chance riding down them this first trip. We heard too many stories about accidents on them.) We timed it pretty well as the bus arrived just before we arrived at the spot we planned to meet it.

Once at the lake we rode over to Refrigerator Harbor Campground where we rested, ate our lunches and explored a cave. There were tents there where some Forest Rangers were headquartered for a base camp from which they led a group of volunteers to clear the trail to Domke Lake.

After lunch we rode over the the ranger cabin to see Bob and Sue, friends who are volunteering for the Forest Service for the summer. We didn't meet up with them, but met two of the volunteers who were down there taking care of three llamas. The Forest Service uses llamas to help carry supplies into the wilderness for the trail crews. We took pictures of the llamas and after a nice visit with the volunteers, we headed back to the Lucerne boat dock to be picked up by the second transport bringing folks down from the village to catch the boat. While we were waiting, we explored the shoreline. In the winter the Chelan County PUD lets about 17 feet of water out of the lake. This causes boat passengers to have to walk up or down a ramp that is at about a 45 degree angle. You can imagine how hard it is to get luggage and freight up and down the ramp. Now with the snow melt off, the lake is coming back up to normal and within a week or two will be covering what is the winter shoreline.

Anyway we explored around the shore while waiting for our ride back up the mountain. As we were getting ready to load our bikes and backpacks into the van, Wanda's backpack started moving of it's own accord. It was funny to see her scream and drop the pack on the ground. Our savior, Dave the van driver, opened it up and dumped out a chipmunk who had feasted on her leftover lunch.

We were all dead tired by the time we got back to the village about 3:30 p.m. Strangely enough the ride did good for my aching leg muscles and bum knees. They felt good the rest of the day. We are planning another outing soon. Keep in touch!

Prom Night

Clowns, elephants, a tattooed lady, bearded ladies, acrobats, jugglers, leopards, tightrope walkers, the Big Top. . . .

What do these have in common? They all escaped from the circus and turned up at the Holden High School prom on Saturday night.

In true Holdenesque fashion the theme for the prom was "Circus Escapees at a Rave" and was attended by circus performers of all kinds. At Holden the high school prom is a village-wide event - a big celebration attended by staff and guests alike. The Village Center was decorated to look like a circus tent, everyone made good use of the costume shop, and the result was a good time for all.

When was the last time you were at a high school prom? Bet it wasn't anything like this!

The Labyrinth

About a mile west of Holden Village proper lies the "Ballpark." The "ballpark" has been called the ballpark since the 1940's when Holden was a mining town. During the summer the miners played baseball there every Saturday. Sometimes they even had teams from others towns come in for a little competition. Great village picnics were held there too. The Fourth of July and Labor Day were big celebrations in those days with all the families turning out for food, games, and celebration.

Once in a great while the Holden Villagers even play ball there--except it is usually soccer, not baseball. Mostly though it is just a large open area to pass through on the way to the wilderness trail head for back country hikes to Hart Lake, Holden Lake, Lyman Lake and many other hiking areas. However several years ago some former directors built a labyrinth at one end of the ballpark. (Never fear, there is still room to play ball of any kind).

The labyrinth is a popular place for some people to go. It is a long labyrinth and takes awhile to completely walk it. The path is made out of wood chips and lined with rocks. A yellow rope outlines the perimeter of it. Right now the rope and the sticks that hold the rope are suffering from the heavy snow that laid on it all winter. The grass is barely starting to grow again and the flowers (which would be considered weeds anywhere else) are stiff and brown. During the summer wild flowers and grasses grow in the areas between the paths. By mid summer the growth is knee high in some places so you have to be at the perimeter to see the path.

Yesterday afternoon Wanda and I rode our bikes out to the ballpark and walked the path of the labyrinth. Being out of shape as I am, it was very tiring, but it was good for the soul. We then walked over to the firepit and sat and talked and rested for awhile. From this point you can see into the woods surrounding the area and hear the rushing water of Railroad Creek. I could have spent more time there but pizza was on the menu for supper, so we biked back to the village in time to partake of that.

Miscellaneous Stuff

I haven't updated my blog for awhile, so here goes....
I left the village for a week on May 14th and flew to Texas to visit family and friends. I had a nice visit there with several friends. Eileen Larsen was good enough to make two trips to DFW airport to pick me up and take me back. Thanks, Eileen.
And Chris McClure did the same for me in Seattle to Sea-Tac and back. Thanks Chris.
When I got back to Seattle, Chris and friends, Ramona, Becky, Jan and Wanda, had a luncheon at Ramona and Becky's home. It was wonderful!
I came back to a drizzly Holden Village and still haven't caught up on all the work that piled up while I was gone. But I will (hopefully) this next week.
The snow is practically all gone, the window screens are up, the flowers are blooming and the wildlife is back. It amazes me how the deer just roam the village and are not afraid of people. There have been a few bear sightings along the road too, and of course the little chipmunks are as pesty as ever.
This afternoon I am going for a bike ride. I just hope I remember how after the long winter hibernation.
Have a wonderful holiday weekend!
Gail

Downsizing

For the last seven or eight years I have been on a mission to downsize my possessions, to have a simpler existence without all the "stuff" I have in my house. At home I have garage sales usually once a year and get rid of some things I have decided I can live without. However I still find myself having more than I need. I am tempted by store displays, catalogs, garage sales, etc. I am not an obsessive consumer by any means, but little things tend to catch my eye when I am out and about.
Living at Holden for the last two years has been a lesson in how much "stuff" I don't need. I have been living in one room with a minimum of possessions and have discovered how easy it is to get along without a lot of things. I don't buy books anymore, but get them through the mail order library in Wenatchee. I have written to the catalog companies that send me catalogs, asking them to stop sending them. That way I can't be tempted, plus it helps reduce the amount of recycling that goes on here. This year I made a pledge not to buy anything new. I am finding that kind of hard though as I have bought three Holden specific items from our bookstore (souvenirs, I tell myself), one inexpensive gift, and a couple of greeting cards. (Gee, I feel like this is confession time or something.) Anyway, I have rededicated myself to not buying anything else now. I'm feeling guilty enough about those things.
This weekend I am downsizing the stuff I have in my room here. I am sending some things home, putting some in our give away room, and giving some other things away. I am already making plans to have a huge sale when I get back to Texas next Fall and really get rid of a lot. And I am looking forward to it!

Gail

Changes

Things are always changing at Holden Village. Now that Spring is sometimes in the air and May youth weekends have started, we have moved vespers from the Fireside Room into the Village Center for the summer. The first weekend just ended, so we are back to a small village again until Saturday when the next group arrives. The elementary school kids also left today on a week long field trip. Next week the high school students leave on their field trip.

But the change of seasons is not the only change here. Staff are always coming and going. In the next two weeks we are saying goodbye to four long term staff members. Several more will be leaving in June. As a matter of fact everyone who lives in Agape with me (eight people) will be gone by the end of June, leaving me the only current staff person still there. I will be living with all new people then. We have also started getting several of the new summer staff on board. Some have been here before and some haven't. My friend, Wanda, from Florida, arrived last Wednesday to become part of the long term staff for the next year.

I was scheduled to leave here this month also, but have been extended through the summer and will end on September 1.

Today is my birthday and I was kind of bah-humbug about it this morning, but so many people have been singing and giving me candy and cards that I can't help but feel better about it now. I also have received several cards in the mail and I love getting mail. (hint, hint)

Gail