For me, the past few days have been special, among the most meaningful I have yet hand in my circuitous life. Yesterday, the Creative Conference At Pompanuck Farm, and it was a powerful experience for me.

I loved teaching my blogging and writing class, Maria loved teaching her intuitive potholder class, Paula Bogdan taught a photography class and Tom Atkins (reading poetry above) taught about creativity and marketing.

It all felt so good, so connecting, so rich. Saturday, a couple showed up who flew all the way from England to come to the Open House, they read the blog every day. Another couple came from Idaho, I’d been hearing about them all week as they explored our wonderful little town in upstate New York,  and I was beginning to think they were mythical.

There was a rapt crowd to watch Jim McRae shear the Romneys and out other sheep, we collected some truly remarkable wool, Maria will have  a lot more to say about it. The Gang Of Four put up quite a fight (videos to come) but the veteran Vermont shearers handled them skillfully.

Maria sold a busload of art, and two spinners – Sue Smith and Suzy Fatzinger – sat under a tent and spun Bedlam Farm wool all day while other spinners watched. Red and Fate and I ran ourselves ragged doing herding demos, running donkey tours.

Ed Gulley talked about farming and his art, and three poets – Mary Kellogg, Jackie Thorne and Tom Atkins read some of their poems.

Red was his stellar self, Fate charmed everyone and ran around all day chasing sheep and greeting people, she was the official greeter. Tonight, she passed out. She was limping a bit today, but we are leaving her alone to get better. I did five or six herding demos and my feet don’t like me tonight.

Maria is a zombie, she started falling asleep at 7 p.m. We will do it again tomorrow. The weather was threatening all day, it got windy and cloudy and cold, the outer edges of the giant hurricane churning up the skies. Despite that, more than 500 people showed up, a steady stream that continue until after 4 p.m.

At least five people told me they were planning to move to Cambridge because of what they see and hear on the blog. I was startled by that, humbled, and found it hard to believe people would move here because of anything I write on my blog and in my books.

I loved the feeling of today, it was pure, sweet and very connecting, the sense of good and valued and trusted friends gathering to share a common spirit – one of gentleness, creativity, and encouragement. The political storms raging beyond receded, they were not mentioned here, people put all that aside to pat the donkeys, meet the pony, learn about Red, laugh about Fate, appreciate and buy the wonderful art she had assembled in her Schoolhouse Studio.

So many people have been following my writing for a long time, a writer could not ask for much more. The blog is my story, and I am committed to telling it.

Despite the weather, people came far and worked hard to get here, and we appreciated it. Tomorrow, a quiet day as Sundays are, a clear and cooler day. We have done these Open Houses for five or six years now, Maria and I do them together. For me, they are a bellwether of her artistry, strength and confidence. We are happy to share our lives with you, ups and downs, good and bad. I’ll put up some more photos and videos of the day tonight and tomorrow.