The zinnia is a flower we’ve grown for years at Beaver Farm and for many good reasons. It’s a beautiful flower and comes in many vibrant colors. Bees and butterflies love zinnias, and if you’re lucky, you may also attract some hummingbirds. It grows strong through the summer and into the fall and even acts as a great companion plant, protecting others from pests and deer. It’s an easy and rewarding flower to care for as it asks for so little and gives so much in abundance.
Historically, zinnias have come to represent the reunion of friends, which is what this year feels like, a reunion. For the first time in a while, we have been able to start the year together, united, as a community. Our first day of the program began with our festival meeting indoors. Crews are back to a mix of students and coworkers from all of the different houses blending together, no longer isolating from each other in units. Lunch was held in the dining hall for the first time in two and a half years, the room overflowing once again with excitement and life. It felt like the beginning of something familiar but also something completely new because this togetherness meant even more than before. After two and a half years of varying degrees of separation, we were finally able to begin together again; our steps once again in sync, and our stories once again intertwined.
On Friday, Amelia, Sarah, and April spent their afternoon in the crew harvesting and processing zinnias from our garden. They made bundles of the bright sturdy flowers that they then hand-delivered to houses and employees as the program ended for the week and everyone began to head to their respective homes for a shower, dinner, and perhaps even a movie night. Reunited and stronger than ever, Beaver Farm is back, and we can’t wait to see what amazing experiences the 2022-2023 program year brings.