There are many different types of Amish people. Some can be extremely isolated, including secluding themselves from the wider local Amish community itself because they feel it’s too worldly. Others use technology pretty heavily. It’s definitely not a monolith: your experience bears witness.
There are many different types of Amish people. Some can be extremely isolated, including secluding themselves from the wider local Amish community itself because they feel it’s too worldly. Others use technology pretty heavily. It’s definitely not a monolith: your experience bears witness.
i stayed with a different amish family over night and slept out on the porch (it was VERY hot inside) with their daughters on little mattresses. the mother said that the boys didn't mind the heat and slept inside. a massive storm blew in and one by one, the daughters picked up their bedding and went in. one came back out to fetch me but i wouldn't have missed that storm for all the world!
the next day, neighboring farmers came over and sought me out. "we heard you slept on the porch during the storm; you're very brave" they would say.
i was helping them prepare for a big lunch of their Weston Price food co-op members from NYC and had gotten there the night before. when you are doing something, the children will size you up and see how they can help. without a word, they join in and you form a little assembly line, you and a 5 year old.
they appear in the barn at milking time, by magic they are in the farm store when you are ready to purchase. the eggs get collected. when the farmer asks you to put the chairs away, you turn and a little 7 year old girl is right behind you to help. when you are chopping celery for the salad, a 4 year old boy is there to hand you the next stalk and his older (not by much) sister is out in the garden gathering more.
they have cast off toys- incongruous things like toy trucks and toy telephones!
at the end of the event, a couple of young girls got in their buggy to go home. my boyfriend, himself the father of daughters and concerned for these two managing a horse drawn buggy by themselves, asked the farmer's wife if they got licenses from the State to drive those things. "no parent would give their child more than they knew the child could handle" she answered.
the greatest amish experience i ever had was on 21st St in NYC. we were packing up after a food delivery. the driver had gone upstairs to collect the checks and i was standing out on the street so as not to leave Raymond, a 16 year old amish boy, alone.
the driver of a sleek car started cursing at Raymond for parking the delivery truck too close to his precious vehicle. the truck was parked in the delivery lane as it should have been. the irate driver was parked a foot and a half away from the curb, which did put him close to the truck.
"sir, please calm down" i said. "this is an amish boy; he is not the driver." more profanity. "sir! if you hadn't parked your car so far from the curb, you'd have plenty of room. please stop cursing."
the man sputtered, got in his car and easily pulled away.
Raymond looked at me with a wisdom well beyond his years and said "that man has too much pride in his car." i still tear up when i think of this moment.
months later, our food group took a trip to his family's farm and Raymond expertly drove a hay wagon full of us city slickers, navigating hills and sharp turns.
when we run out of oil or when the grid goes down, our social justice gender non-conforming internet addicted kids won't have a clue. Raymond and his people know how to coax food from the ground; they are better educated than all of us.
I love all the stories on this thread! Thank you for writing them out. I have long harbored a deep admiration of the Amish, as well as the European Roma. Why over complicate life when you already know what really matters?
There are many different types of Amish people. Some can be extremely isolated, including secluding themselves from the wider local Amish community itself because they feel it’s too worldly. Others use technology pretty heavily. It’s definitely not a monolith: your experience bears witness.
i stayed with a different amish family over night and slept out on the porch (it was VERY hot inside) with their daughters on little mattresses. the mother said that the boys didn't mind the heat and slept inside. a massive storm blew in and one by one, the daughters picked up their bedding and went in. one came back out to fetch me but i wouldn't have missed that storm for all the world!
the next day, neighboring farmers came over and sought me out. "we heard you slept on the porch during the storm; you're very brave" they would say.
i was helping them prepare for a big lunch of their Weston Price food co-op members from NYC and had gotten there the night before. when you are doing something, the children will size you up and see how they can help. without a word, they join in and you form a little assembly line, you and a 5 year old.
they appear in the barn at milking time, by magic they are in the farm store when you are ready to purchase. the eggs get collected. when the farmer asks you to put the chairs away, you turn and a little 7 year old girl is right behind you to help. when you are chopping celery for the salad, a 4 year old boy is there to hand you the next stalk and his older (not by much) sister is out in the garden gathering more.
they have cast off toys- incongruous things like toy trucks and toy telephones!
at the end of the event, a couple of young girls got in their buggy to go home. my boyfriend, himself the father of daughters and concerned for these two managing a horse drawn buggy by themselves, asked the farmer's wife if they got licenses from the State to drive those things. "no parent would give their child more than they knew the child could handle" she answered.
the greatest amish experience i ever had was on 21st St in NYC. we were packing up after a food delivery. the driver had gone upstairs to collect the checks and i was standing out on the street so as not to leave Raymond, a 16 year old amish boy, alone.
the driver of a sleek car started cursing at Raymond for parking the delivery truck too close to his precious vehicle. the truck was parked in the delivery lane as it should have been. the irate driver was parked a foot and a half away from the curb, which did put him close to the truck.
"sir, please calm down" i said. "this is an amish boy; he is not the driver." more profanity. "sir! if you hadn't parked your car so far from the curb, you'd have plenty of room. please stop cursing."
the man sputtered, got in his car and easily pulled away.
Raymond looked at me with a wisdom well beyond his years and said "that man has too much pride in his car." i still tear up when i think of this moment.
months later, our food group took a trip to his family's farm and Raymond expertly drove a hay wagon full of us city slickers, navigating hills and sharp turns.
when we run out of oil or when the grid goes down, our social justice gender non-conforming internet addicted kids won't have a clue. Raymond and his people know how to coax food from the ground; they are better educated than all of us.
100%!
I love all the stories on this thread! Thank you for writing them out. I have long harbored a deep admiration of the Amish, as well as the European Roma. Why over complicate life when you already know what really matters?