Today's Youth Perspective ~ Nora Terrill
After breakfast at our hosts, we all met up at Sarah & Rachel's house before heading off to the Ripon countryside. We arrived at Mallard Grange (grange = farm) where Charlie and James (father & son) who run the farm, showed us around. Mallard Grange is a cattle farm that has about 300 head of cattle. They grow barley for feed and wheat for market. We split in two groups and were shown their four mating bulls, the heifers (which refer to female cows who have two or less calves), and the older heards. We also were shown their newer facilities that include the pens where the female cows are taken to give birth. We were hosted for tea & coffee and a tour of the farm house and grounds that have been in existence since the 1600's. A short drive from the farm, we next visited Fountain Abbey. A large monastery that dates back to the 12th century, it was dissolved and left for ruin in 1539 by Henry VIII. We explored around the grounds which also include gardens that date back to the 18th century. Next we went into Ripon to visit the Cathedral. One of the three Cathedrals in the Diocese of Leeds, it is one of the largest, even rivaling St. Paul's in London. Led by Gabriel's mom and dad, Juliet & Peter, we had a wonderful tour of the Cathedral, including down into the Anglo-Saxon crept that dates from 672 AD. We stayed for Evening Prayer where Nora read the second lesson. The Cathedral was impressive and clergy and staff were very welcoming. Once back to Sarah & Rachel's, Alison (Sarah's mom) had prepared a dinner of lasagnas and salad for us, then we headed back to our hosts to end the day.
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