Amish Paradise

This morning I read about the Amish because we passed through farmlands with large settlements of Amish people.  They live life without technology and preserve the old ways of living and working.   Have you ever considered what your life would be like without technology or electricity?  Imagine one day from beginning to end where you have no electronics, car or modern conveniences.  If you want toast in the morning how do you get the bread?  You make it. You want it hot? Build a fire.  You want milk, go milk the cow and churn the butter.  It was interesting to compare their lives to our own.  The Amish do not feel that technology is a sin or is bad, they just don't like the impact it has on their lives and choose not to use it.

Their lives are slower paced, they are social people who stick to a few miles from their home and stick to what they know opening businesses that they know a lot about.  The site, Amishpeople.org, asked a good question “Would consumers trust an Amish cell-phone dealer or an Amish computer repair guy to know what he’s doing? It’d be a pretty big mental and marketing hurdle to get over.”  Take away technology and what is it they can do for a living? The answer is found about 100 years back or more.  They are farmers, craftsman and carpenters.  They own shops selling their handmade tools and wares and the women make baskets and sew beautiful patchwork quilts.  One of our favorite things was the unique quilt patterns on the barn doors of the farms we passed all throughout Missouri, Iowa and Wisconsin.  I think each family must have their own like a crest or coat of arms.  I will look into that and ask around. 

Young people in Amish community get to go out on what is called a "Rumspringa" which means "running outside the bounds" of their beliefs and lifestyle.  When they are about the age of 16 they are encouraged to go out into the modern world and get as many experiences as they can before they make a choice to stay in the Amish church and community by being baptized.   Most choose to return and few stay because to leave the Amish means you can never go back.   They choose to be separate from the outside world today because in their history their ancestors were persecuted for their beliefs.  So, they got used to living separated and on the outskirts of civilization which meant they had little cooperation and contact with other people.  They are not bitter or rude they are social, humble and kind. 

In thinking on which I would choose, and if you know me you know I hate to choose, I would want the best of both worlds.  Living on our farm and raising and growing our own food is something that gives me great joy and pride.  The work is sometimes very hard and unenjoyable but the result is yummy bacon, fresh salads and being responsible to the planet.  On the other side I wouldn't like living without little things like lightbulbs, toasters, electronic gadgets and my electric assist bike. 

How about you?

Haikus Mom and I wrote:
             A buggy crossing/ Signal the old ways cross here/in amish country
             An new way of life/stitched into the fabric of/an old Amish quilt
              An old way of life/ horse and buggy crossing here/ feels like new to me
              They'll never play my/bass guitar or nintendo/only air guitar

painting by paul richard james