Yes, I'm blogging about the Amish . . . Again

Here are a few pictures from our visit to the Amish community last week. As you know, the Amish are EXTREMELY conservative. . . well to us, anyways. There are no cameras, so we don't see a lot on TV about them. . . other than the fictional romances or ex-amish testimonies. I love the Beverly Louis fictional romance book series, but I think it gave me a fake identity of the Amish. . . they aren't as glamorous and romantic as she portrays them. The most realistic view I've gotten from them (other than the visit of course) is the new National Geographic show Amish: Out of Order. It's a great show, and the ex-amish tell the not so glamorous side of the Amish.

The book I'm reading (check out my previous blog post for information) put my curiosity into words very well in the chapter I just finished. "The Amish certainly are doers of good. But one of their most attractive qualities- and one of the most important ways they serve the outside world- is simply by being who they are. Like Sara and Ezra {two Mennonite children mentioned earlier in the chapter}, the Amish show us that a more innocent, less harried state of being is still possible. They preserve skills and practical arts that would otherwise be lost. And they demonstrate that life without communication technology is not only doable but desirable. By taking us back, they help us move forward. Teaching through example, the Amish show us how to make conscious choices about the kind of world we want to leave our children, and all the other utterly dependent babies of the world." - Almost Amish by Nancy Sleeth

This is the first house we visited. We got several jams, pickles, and a candle here. So far, all have been WONDERFUL! I especially love my watermelon candle.

They have signs at the end of their driveway telling what all they have for purchase. This family had lots of tasty treats. Cinnamon rolls, breads, jellies, pickles, cookies. . . O, I'm getting hungry just thinking about it. Several people left me suggestions on facebook not to purchase baked goods because of the Amishs' hygiene. Yes, their kids were dirty. . . well dirty compared to our overly bathed children. However, the womens' hands looked clean. And while being nosey and snooping a look into one kitchen, I noticed hand soap on the counter. I don't urge you to buy if you aren't comfortable, but it didn't bother me. Those pastries looked tasty, and to be honest, a little dirt under the nails wasn't going to hold me back. Their life expectancy tends to be a little longer than the average American, so it couldn't be too deadly to dive in.

The main house belongs to an Amish couple from Michigan married just three weeks ago. The husband was tilling away (with a small shovel. . . I wanted badly to push him over a gas powered tiller) while his shy wife was working hard in the kitchen. Mr. Jacob Gingrich lives in the small Dawdi Haus (the Amish version of an in-law suite). The main house once belonged to one of his sons. Mr. Jacob is now 76, and his wife passed 2 years ago. He makes baskets, and his wife was a basket maker as well. We bought a beautiful piece he had made last week. His daughter is the only child who still lives in the Randolph Community. We also visited her home. . . save that thought for later. For fear I may get myself in trouble here, I'll keep it vague. (Thanks Hipaa!) Mr. Jacob and Arthur chatted for a long time recollecting a visit Mr. Jacob had to the Tupelo hospital. I'll leave it at that, and let you put the pieces together. No, I don't think I'm disobeying the law by having knowledge of this, as Arthur is not the one who brought this information to my attention. Mr. Jacob shared this information with me for the first time. . . There! I think I covered myself. Mr. Jacob and his late wife have 19 children, 189 grandchildren, and he lost count, but his last total of great grandchildren was 40-something. Whew! How do you remember them all? Don't worry. . . He doesn't! He said he has it all written down somewhere in the house.

For fear of disrespecting this young man (yes, young! He looked all of 8!), I took this picture from our car a long distance away. Then I cropped it in when we got home. Excuse the poor quality.

Talk about feeling guilty when I saw this. I complain if my remote start doesn't work. Some days I hear it crank from a distance, then when I get to the car, it's off, and my seat isn't cool. Well, this girl is hitching up a horse to a carriage. And you should have seen her pick this carriage up by herself and roll it over to the horse. My chin was dirty from hitting the floorboard of my car that hasn't been vacuumed since AE was born. . . I don't think I'd have to worry about that vacuum if this were my mode of transportation. I wonder if they ever see the cars drive by and think . . . Geez! Those spoiled English. . . Or to the contrary. . . Geez! It would be nice to leave that horse and buggy behind and have a set of keys to that thing.

I was shocked by the number of barns, sheds, greenhouses, etc. each family had in their yard. There were anywhere from 6-10 structures of all sorts in each family lot.

Ok. . . back to Mr. Jacob's daughter. She was 2 years older than me, and she had 9 children. The first birth was twins. She had no clue 2 were coming. . . . No sonogram! Can you imagine? . . no epidural, no hospital, no doctor, no reclining bed, no monitors, no sonogram. . . and SURPRISE! TWINS!

She was telling me she had 9 children and pointed to the children standing on the porch. About 5 minutes later in our conversation, she points, laughs, and replies, "well, he isn't mine. . . he's a neigbors' boy." If I had 9, I'd probably do the same. Arthur was wearing a baggy, new (bright white) Columbia fishing shirt. She asked, "Are you a doctor?" to which he replied "yes." He was curious why she asked and she said it was because of his clothing. What? To us a Columbia fishing shirt is a long way off from physician attire, but if you think, the shirt was baggy and freshly white. So, I guess it could resemble their white coat. Anyways, like her father, Mr. Jacob, she recognized Arthur from her visit to the hospital as well. They talked for awhile about that. She had a daughter a few months older than AE, and they played on the porch for about 10 minutes together. It was adorable. I so badly wanted to take a picture. The little girl had cloth wrapped around her with safety pins for a diaper. . . O! I cannot imagine cleaning that. She also had on the full Amish clothing which was ADORABLE. If I could've bought one for AE, I would have. The dress was SO dirty, but the little girl just looked so sweet in it. And I want even go into detail about how dirty all the children were. The nice thing to not bathing as frequent. . . no dry skin!

It was so amazing to visit this community, and I cannot wait to go back. I'm so sad I've waited this long to visit, and even more sad that we are leaving the area soon. If you are curious, I encourage you to go. It's a great field trip for your children. Be prepared to answer a lot of questions if they are of age to be curious or confused by this foreign lifestyle. They have patio furniture, baked food, canned jams, pickles, baskets, and in-season produce.

Anne Elise was inspired to wear her bonnet the next day to church.