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Answering Questions
Bonnie wrote: I found your book very moving. You have certainly embraced this new life and I am very happy for you. My question (feel free to not answer if this will cause you trouble with your Amish family) what punishment if any happened to your brother? Bonnie, while I was in the community, my…
Read MoreYour Questions
Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow. The important thing is not to stop questioning. ~ Albert Einstein It has been a while since I offered this, and I know many of you have signed up recently to my blog. So, I would like to offer to answer your questions in my…
Read MoreWhat Are You Now?
The problem of sanctity and salvation is in fact the problem of finding out who I am and of discovering my true self. ~ Thomas Merton Last week I delivered my 111th author talk since my book was published. (I love the symmetry of the fact that there were 111 people at the talk.) There is…
Read MoreWho’s Driving this Buggy?
The other day, David and I were driving east on Route 340 in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. I was talking with David when I caught quite a sight out of the corner of my eye. We’d met a buggy driven by a man with a long gray beard that was blowing in the wind. Right next to…
Read MoreTransitioning into a New Culture
When I shared my wedding photos a while ago, Sprouting Acorn asked: While you knew you were ready to leave your Amish community, was it difficult to jump into the “English” ways and traditions? (Church wedding, white wedding dress, etc.) You seem so at ease in these photos, which only says you must have been very…
Read MoreThat Rumspringa Misconception, Again
… and again. I can gear a book talk towards correcting the misconception about Rumspringa, yet inevitably one of the first questions posed to me from an audience member will be about that time when young people get to leave the culture and decide whether they want to come back and join the Amish. Last…
Read MoreA New Website!
I am so excited about MY NEW WEBSITE. Please hop on over and have a look. I would love to know what you think, including what improvements we can make.The reason for the revamp is that I was having trouble with iWeb, which is the program I was using before. My techie friend, Jason Woof,…
Read MoreSnapshots 16: The Day I Lived a Beautiful Dream
is day I will marry my best friend, the one I laugh with, live for, dream with, love ~ Author Unknown~ I know exactly which day I felt most like going and shouting my joy from the mountaintop. It all happened under Mt. Mansfield in Burlington, Vermont, on May 29, 1982, when the lilacs and lilies-of-the-valley were blooming that David…
Read MoreSnapshots 15: Preparing for the Big Day
Thirty years ago, David and I were preparing for our wedding day. There was a great deal of anticipation leading up to it. I still don't know how we pulled it off — I had no help from family and the friends I had were fairly new, so I didn't want to ask too much…
Read MoreSnapshots 13: Wearing Amish — One Last Time
It seems I had a mix-up with my "Snapshots 11" post. I thought I had posted it, but it must not have gone up. If you are interested, please see the post below "Snapshots 12." I believe the last time I wore Amish was for my sister, Susan's wedding. She invited me to the wedding…
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