Creating Experiences

One of the things we’re passionate about at our farm is creating experiences for our guests. We’re fortunate that the former owner of our property, Freddie Eads, hand cleared the acreage into a beautiful mix of groves of trees and pastures. He left a legacy that serves as a backdrop or foundation for everything we do - farming, events, glamping and farm to table dinners. While we’ve taken down some trees for projects and added some ponds, the land still holds the fingerprint of Mr. Eads. We’re building on that to help others enjoy their time on the property.

Here are just a few experiences we’ve either witnessed firsthand or had recounted to us by our guests:

• A teenage girl sitting on a camp chair next to her dad, throwing out a line in the catch and release pond and pulling in the largest catfish ever caught on the property.

• Young siblings giggling and running around in the field with battery operated lanterns at dusk.

• Families wrapped in blankets in their camp chairs, sipping hot chocolate, while watching a Christmas movie on a big screen outdoors.

• People from diverse backgrounds connecting with one another over the table, while savoring dinner prepared by a chef over an open fire.

• Friends sitting around a blazing campfire, roasting marshmallows to perfection before placing them between two graham cracker halves with just enough Hershey’s chocolate to make the quintessentially all American camping treat - a s’more.

• Kids swinging in a tree swing under a giant oak, looking up at the sky through a gently rustling network of leaves.

• A woman being “hugged” by one of our donkeys - the shy one - after suffering a personal heartbreak.

• Folks from the city having a family game night in one of our cozy tents, while listening to the rain outside.

• A couple getting engaged on a weeknight when no other guests are on the property.

• A little boy helping Farmer Houston feed the animals breakfast during a private farm tour.

There are things we do intentionally to create opportunities for these kinds of experiences. Decor like Edison lights strung through the branches of a giant oak tree, hanging over a table help to set the mood for an al fresco dinner. Card games and soft lighting inside our glamping tents provide the perfect environment for families and friends to reconnect. Our free range animals give kids that live in the city an opportunity to interact with animals they may never have been in such close proximity to.

As much as we do to help create space for experiences like these, we know that it’s up to our guests to embrace the opportunity. And most do. The bonus is that they leave us with those memories as well.

This piece first appeared in Sherry’s column, Finding Myself in a Small Town, in the October 29, 2022 edition of the Corsicana Daily Sun.