My Cabin, Binnacle, had the great task of waking up at 6 am to do farm chores starting three days ago. I personally am a huge night owl and prior to Maine Coast Semester, I would never have imagined myself waking up at 6 am to go help out on the farm before my classes even started. I also would never have imagined enjoying it. Thankfully I have my cabin to wake up with me. My cabin has grown so much closer than I ever expected it to in a short three weeks. Before coming to Chewonki I was worried I would not fit into the culture and community, but things like farm chores helped my cabin come together. 

The morning starts off with a medley of alarms. Soon after, one of the lighter sleepers will get out of bed and wake everybody. Then in silence, everyone puts on their long underwear and overalls to battle the morning cold. Though some people complain about farm chores, the worst part about it is waking up. The camaraderie that comes with waking up before the sun is even up is worth it. 

After we take the compost and slop buckets to the farm, we all split up into our respective farm chores, mine being the turkeys and the male sheep. I have learned so much about farm animals just by being around them. For example, you would think that the turkeys would be interested in their food more than filling up the water, but that cannot be farther from the truth. Turkeys absolutely love their water for some reason.

The craziest thing that has ever happened to me in Chewonki happened during farm chores. Right as we finished sweeping the barn, the sky opened up and it started thundering. My cabin mates and I looked over and to our surprise saw all the cows and sheep running away from their enclosure! We then had to run around and corral them safely back into their pens. There is always something exciting happening on the farm. 

Anya Joseph, Princeton Day School, West Windsor, NJ