We have sunk our taproot deeply into these rocky ledges on Maple Hill Lane in the Village of Jacksonville (Town of Whitingham) in the foothills of Vermont’s Green Mountains. For over ½ century (since 1970) this has been my ‘happy place’ suffused with memories of the wonders of the changing seasons in nature and in our lives.
The 1827 farmhouse we bought in 1970 was called, “The Swayback House” because of the sloping roofline. At first, it felt more like a commune as our friends brought their sleeping bags and guitars to gather on weekends for making music and food together. Over the past ½ century, our house became our home….full of rituals, traditions, adventures, and expressions of our deep connection to one another, the land, and our “Brave Little State” of Vermont. In 1987 we ‘reconstituted’ the house by taking it apart and rebuilding it up off the road after clearing the existing forest and building a driveway lined with huge stones blasted from the rocky ledges. That driveway stonework became the basis for a magnificent hand-split rail fence to keep the goats in their acres of pasture and woods in a bell shape area around the house and garden. Over the decades, Ralph, Ken Noyes, Larry Dix, Zinny Swanson, and David Powell Sr. built the post and beam barn now housing the goats and chickens, the “Octagon” replacing the genuine Mongolian “ger” (yurt) originally transported from Ulaanbaatar to Vermont to honor the many experiences we had in Mongolia, now complete with a herd of American Cashmere Goats. For 35 years our family held Thanksgiving for 35 family members…..one of the fondest memories in their childhood and adult years. Now the house contains not only memories of Ralph and my fondest times together, but the artifacts, collections, implements, and expressions of the love we have for our home and for each other.
