Amish Friends

[CrealCritter]

Our Amish Friends are moving to Northern WV. Actually our Amish Friends Bother and his wife/childern have already moved. Amish is a little different kind of life style. Let me see if I can explain what I've learned. I can't use names on the internet or in public places because that would be very disrespectful to them.

I'll call our friends A for the husband and B for the wife and their 8 children 1 through 8.

Our friends brother to A - I'll call C and his wife I'll call D and their 5 childern I call 9 through 14 - OK got it?

Well A & C are bothers and B & D are sisters, so that makes 1 through 14 brothers or sisters or cousins. Now Amish will only wed other Amish unless 1 through 14 decide when they come of age to leave the Amish community and seek a life in the secular world. Which happens but is very rare. But it can happen it's up to the child when they become 15 or 16.

If they decide to stay in the Amish community they ofcourse will marry another Amish. But they can not marry a brother or sister or cousin.

So this is mainly why you see Amish communities pop up and then disappear. They or at least our Amish friends have only been here a short time and they are fixing to leave already because all of the other Amish families near them have already left and there are no other Amish close by for them to attend church with or for their children to marry. It's not because they find the place bad or anything like that. But the #1 responsibility of a parent is to teach them the Fear of the Lord and #2 is it to put the childern into an environment where they will choose a wife.

 

[CrealCritter]

Well I can take one picture of the pies and cream

 

[CrealCritter]

This morning was very sad 😢. I'm a guy and honestly there ain't to many other guys I call friends. But I did develop a close friendship with my Amish friend.

Today was moving day, my wife reminded me two days ago, that they planned to have the semi loaded and on the road by noon today. But somehow it slipped my mind. When I rolled out of bed on my knees to pray this morning the memory came back to me in a huge way. So I got over to their house about 9:00 AM.

There must have been 50 Amish men, boys and woman and girls there packing, cleaning and loading up the truck. Two big long vans also for them to ride in. I stopped in the drive as I walked up and took a big deep breath trying to fight back the sadness of what I felt in my heart.

I found my friend and is only son (5) packing up one of the bed rooms. I spoke with him and told him "Thank You for being a Friend, even if you don't realize it, you taught me how to be a better man. I believe God, puts good people in our life like you, to help us see our own faults and show us how to improve ourselves".

Now granted this is the very first time we ever spoke of God before. But I must have said the right thing because I seen smile and a tear flow down his cheek. Then he said, "yes, yes you are right, God does and I've learned a lot from you also, you showed me, what it's like to not be greedy". Then he said "everytime you come over you unknowingly blessed the family." You would never take even a penny from us, eventhough we insisted, that is a very rare and often misunderstood gift you have, we had to get creative with paying you with pies" I laughed and then I shed a little tear also.

I helped him and his son pack a little. Then my freind stopped and reaffirmed something I've known for a long time when he said "You know we are no different than you are, we have our faults also" but his words somehow brought a new depth of understanding. I said "you are so right and once we all realize that simple truth and truly accept that we all have faults, it's then, when, we all start to heal and develop relationships like we have". He agreed and that, brought a huge smile to both our faces. The sadness I had just up and left me.

I left smiling and happy, just the exact opposite of when I pulled up. We agreed to keep in touch via snale mail. When I got home, my wife informed me I had it all wrong though. My friend is moving to Wisconsin, a 8 ~ 9 hour drive from here. It was his brother and his family that moved to WVa. That made me even more happy because my wife and I agreed that we expect one day to drop in for a visit, since it's really not all that far away ☺️

so for now and into the near future, no more Amish friend stories.

 

[CrealCritter]

Try taking the kids Popsicles on a hot day its special treat since they dont have refrigerators

Thanks CG. They have 4 young girls and 1 young boy. All of them are cute as buttons! And yes it's true they have no refrigeration. They keep their goat's milk cool in a deep pit. It's pretty doggone deep too.

I took my Amish friend to go pick pears this morning. Picking pears with him put a whole new meaning to the phrase "waste not want not" for me. He climbed the trees and got every last one. The ones what were to rotten we piled up around the base of the trees and he said "always leave some for the animals to eat".

 

[CrealCritter]

I cut a whole heaping puckup truck load of firewood from sawmill scraps. I needed to clean up anyways. I took the load over to our Amish friends and in exchange I got a loaf of bread, plate of zucchini brownies and 1 zucchini. I'm glad we settled the money thing. Anytime I would come by with something to give them, they would say we can pay you. After refusing many times I finally had to say that I don't like money, since it creates lots of problems. They both seemed amazed that I don't like money but it's 100% true I don't like money.
Yes two are gone already

Anyways, while stacking firewood I asked Ivan about raising a few cows. He said he has rasied them and they process their own. The conversation then turned to pasture. So over the next few weeks we are going to fence in a pasture on his property and then go to auction and buy 1 bull and two heffers. I'm looking forward to learning how to care for cattle and also how to process them.

 

[CrealCritter]

What kind of pie. You have my mouth watering.

That's pecan pie, it has like some kind of delicious goat milk custard filling in between the crust and thick layer of crushed pecans. I've eat a lot of pecan pies in my days, but nothing quite like this heavenly Amish made goodness.

 

[CrealCritter]

If you ever do desire to get to know an Amish family, I would encourage to you to atleast try. You'll be amazed how much they will enrich you. Not money, but in just general understanding of some of your deepest thoughts to the understanding of life in general and what is my purpose in life.

I will truly miss our Amish friends, they will always have a very special place in my heart, the entire family. I know God had our paths cross for more than just one reason, their were multiple reasons.

 

[TexasLisa]

CrealCritter, you are so lucky. When we lived in Indiana, they lived in the surrounding communities. They were always at the Steam Engine Shows. Please share whatever you learn from them.

 

[sumi]

That looks and sounds like a wonderful arrangement! As does giving them some turkey poults

 

[cabinguy]

I agree the Amish are great friends and a good resource.
Joe Mackall a Ashland Univ. prof wrote a book about the Amish near me Plain Secrets: An Outsider among the Amish
which is a good read if your interested in learning more about Amish. There are many types of Amish very liberal to very strict.
The New order Amish can have solar power,tractors,and even phones in the barn. The strict Old Order Amish don't have running water and no orange triangle on buggy.