December 8, 2002

I decided years ago that I would celebrate each birthday with a trip to a new destination. Maybe a seaside cottage or a rustic mountain cabin. Perhaps an old western hotel room or a rejuvenating desert oasis. It didn’t really matter where I went, only that I treated myself to a new exploration. This past year was no exception. With a little browsing through options, I found a perfect opportunity for adventure. For this year’s getaway, I was going to Ross Mill Farm, home of the pet pig.

I took Pennsylvania’s Hwy 209, along the west side of the Delaware River. As the highway turned to Route 611, smaller country roads approached, taking me west into Bucks County, PA, a mosaic of farmhouses, quaint towns and fields.

I was in for a wonderful experience. The cottage alone would have been worth the trip, a fabulous fieldstone structure, built in 1696. Under a solid beam ceiling, a couch and two cozy chairs circled the old fireplace. Pewter cups and stenciled lace covered the mantel. Tiny lamps rested in old windowsills and on wooden tables and a bowl of fresh apples waited in the stocked kitchen. Looking around, I felt instantly at home as my glance fell on baskets, bookshelves, throw pillows, and a woven oval rug. A plaid tablecloth covered a comfortable table, perfect for meals and writing.

For a price lower than many ordinary hotel rooms, I had an entire cottage to myself. In addition to the living room and kitchen, an enclosed sun porch looked out over a meadow. Off the side of the kitchen, a bathroom offered not only a shower/tub combination, but a stacked washer and dryer. Everything I could have asked for was there and waiting, including a peaceful view from every window.

I was so enchanted that it took me by surprise when a printed brochure informed me that this was a two-bedroom cottage. I put the pamphlet down and looked around, puzzled. Everything seemed complete. It was only upon close inspection of the wall to the left of the fireplace that I realized the appearance of two small closets was deceiving. I pulled on a painted blue door and discovered a staircase that curved sharply inside the wall and headed up toward the right.

Following the narrow, steep steps, I found two wonderful bedrooms. In the first, a comfortable double bed rested below a slanted roof. Beyond this room stretched another, with twin beds and a small nightstand and lamp. A metal angel rested in the frame between the two rooms, three heart shapes allowing light to flow through its center. I looked back down the stairs and felt like I’d found a hidden passageway.

Descending the stairs, I found a quiet seat outside on a carved wooden bench, where I watched the sunset through the bare branches of winter trees. A quiet stillness settled over the cottage and I moved inside, where I fixed a simple meal and built a fire. The warmth of the flames and hush of the evening soon led my eyelids to droop and I soon enjoyed a sound, peaceful night’s rest.

I was sipping fresh coffee in the morning sun when a pig that I would come to know as Manny sauntered by. I watched with curiosity as he calmly headed past the cottage and on down the road.

“Manny knows the meaning of life,” Richard Magidson would tell me later. Co-owner with Susan Armstrong, Richard explained that Manny has long talks with people about knowing this secret, but never actually reveals it, as he knows it is something people must find out for themselves.

As I wandered through the farm, I met many other pot-bellied friends, including Grady, Sunny, and Spike, along with adorable piglets 6-8 weeks of age. It took no time at all to fall completely in love with these amazing creatures. Intelligent and communicative, they responded to discussion and approached eagerly to visit.

There are close to one hundred pot bellied pigs on the farm and as I sat in a wooden swing I watched with fascination as they went about their daily routines and play. Two snapped their snouts playfully at each other, while another galloped by and took off up a wooded trail. A mother pig strolled by, squealing piglets chasing not far behind, who ventured off sideways to explore, then quickly ran back to catch up with their mother.

The farm was busy with activity. A large truck arrived and backed up to double doors, unloading pallets stacked with sacks of feed. This turned out to be Champion Premium Pet Pig Food, a 100% natural mixture that is manufactured by Ross Mill Farm. In addition to high quality food, the farm also offers a safety harness and other necessary items for the proper care of the pot-bellied pig.

I wandered the grounds, a roomy spread of thirty acres. Each living area for these animals is spacious and well kept, with houses that rival the cottage itself. No two are alike, from the “Pig Chalet Bed and Breakfast” to a cozy log cabin and a patriotic red, white and blue structure.

I suppose no vacation is really complete without doing a little shopping and this opportunity was delightfully easy to find. The General Store at Ross Mill Farm offered everything I needed for a good consumer spending spree. If only I had one of these delightful pets at home, I’d have picked up a couple packages of LulaBell’s Good Little Pig Treats, offered in a choice of: Peanut Butter Crunch or Apple and Coconut Snap Cookies. However, my purchases needed to be geared toward presents for my family, so I looked around the shop for other choices. By the time I was ready to total my selections, I had a soft gray fleece sweatshirt, a box of stationary with cottage and farm sketches, a signed copy of Lowell, The True Story of an Existential Pig, by Gay L. Balliet and several copies of Pigorian Chant, a CD-accompanied publication that is both enchanting and humorous.

I reluctantly said goodbye to Ross Mill Farm and waved to my new pot-bellied friends before turning my car down the driveway and heading out. This was a birthday I certainly wouldn’t forget, and a discovery of a wonderful place that is definitely not to be missed.

Ross Mill Farm is conveniently located one hour north of Philadelphia, in scenic, historic Bucks County, Pennsylvania. An easy drive from many east coast areas, it’s a perfect destination for a family trip that is both fun and educational, as well as a unique getaway for the romantically-inclined couple.