Looking Back at the 2012 Season
the signs have been stored. the booths emptied and locked up for the season. the tents and campers all gone…and the forest is quiet, except for the birds, frogs and occasional winds rustling through the tress. but the spirit of sherwood permeates the grounds. and the stones of the seven sisters exudes the energies of […]
the signs have been stored. the booths emptied and locked up for the season. the tents and campers all gone…and the forest is quiet, except for the birds, frogs and occasional winds rustling through the tress. but the spirit of sherwood permeates the grounds. and the stones of the seven sisters exudes the energies of the thousands who touched them and walked among them.
what a season! what a season!!!
season three started cold and rainy. george and i spoke after the first four weekends and wondered if this was to be that season when it would rain almost every weekend…and we would have to dig further into our cauffers to make it to season four. but, even amidst the rain and small attendance at the onset, our spirits were high. we believed in sherwood. we believed in our family.
when it was pouring down one saturday, there were close to seven hundred patrons drenched, yet still walking the grounds, visiting our vendors, and watching what shows could still happen in the flood. there were two hundred faithful campers who survived the flood. and the next day, over twelve hundred showed up.
this is family. this is patronage.
and as the season moved forward, the rains let off, the temperature warmed, and the faire grounds begin to fill up. weeks fsix, seven and eight continued to break attendance records.
remarkable success for a third year faire. people traveled from all over texas and from states as far away as tennessee, michigan, oklahoma, and arkansas…
the talent from the entertainers was astounding for a start up faire. the workmanship of the artisans shown. but most of all, the collective spirit of the patrons — both mundanes and playtrons — was over the top. we are collectively succeeding at building a community around a faire!!!
we are a living breathing spiritual and loving experiement — creating something that is unique and powerful, something that is having an impact on other faires…not because we have the biggest named acts or the fanciest grounds, but because sherwood was begun and remains a faire about the human spirit and holds respect for all the various parts that make up our faire. we see faire as a living organism with a soul. and we are all a part of that entity. we all have a special role to play in the growth and nurturing of its spirit.
this year, there were kids galore running around. up around the castle, at the fae’s tea party, dancing around the seven sister’s drumming at dusk, etc. kids, parents, the aged…generational experience. that is paramount in the growth of our community.
the closing of faire was harder this year. we had all endured challenges at the beginning, but it ended in such fine fashion that we knew sherwood was strong and on the right path.
the exit surveys were overwhelmingly positive. two out of hundreds and hundreds expressed disdain for faire, but 90+% said we were on the right track and gave us exceedingly high remarks (even when we take into account our running out of water on the last day).
we love yall. we believe in you. we thank you for the spirit and soul you bring to this organic and beautiful mosaic of art of wonderment. we are all creating what we envision faire should be.
we welcome your suggestions, ideas and critiques.
onward to the celtic music festival in the fall…and then season four. see ya at scarby and trf. thank you.
much love,
rengypsy
