Picture this–lamb cam has been going on for WEEKS and just the other day the first two lambs were born. Having so graciously waited for us to come back from spring break to be born, buzz about the other ewes being ready to give birth was circulating throughout Semester 70. During our first lunch back, Megan the farmer announced ‘lamb watch sign ups’. Having just gotten off farm chores, none of my cabin had been able to sign up the week before spring break. This time though, I was ready and scribbled my name down, quickly asking my cabin mate Alishia if she would do it with me. With our names and cabin written down on the paper, we excitedly waited for Friday 3 A.M.

This morning, I woke up to the startling sound of beeping and checked the time–2:45 A.M. Quietly throwing myself out of bed, I hastily threw on some layers and saw Alishia doing the same. My grogginess quickly wore away as I remembered that a lamb could be born in the next few minutes. Hoping this would be true, we set out towards the farm.

Chatting about how this was a very distinct and somewhat odd experience, we made our way through the cold night air, the faint light from my headlamp shining down on my feet. As we got closer to the farm, the light illuminating the building, I felt like walking just a little bit quicker, trying to hear if there were any sheep bleats from inside. We rounded the corner and…saw no new baby lambs. Alishia and I counted seven sheep plus the lambs and quietly waited for a new lamb to pop out with no luck. We decided to enjoy our time with the sheep and Hobart for a bit, the clock edging just past 3 A.M.

While no lambs were born, we talked on our way back about just how unique an experience this was and that we were so lucky to get to do this. Nowhere else do I think I’d get to go check on ewes with people as cool as the ones I live with at Chewonki. Coming from the city, I thought this was a really cool and inimitable experience, and I’m excited to do it again. Maybe next time, there’ll be some new additions to the farm!

Alexis Martinez, The Thacher School, Commerce, CA