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Amish and the Color Blue, Superstitions, and Celery at Weddings
Anonymous wrote:Yes! I would love to have been born Amish. In fact, I think I might have been in a past life. When I was 18 yrs.old, I workrd at a daycare center a little boy was drawing a picture of an old man with a beard and a hat. I asked him to tell…
Read MoreAnnouncing the Winner…
Last night I spoke at Odyssey Books in South Hadley, where I met Peggy, who has been following my blog for a while now. I love comments from “the regulars” on my blog, because I feel I get to know you. Last night was the icing on the cake for me, when I met Lynn…
Read MoreReminder of the “Little Village Giveaway” and Saloma on the Radio
Just a reminder that Peggy, a long-time follower, will be choosing the name of the winner for the Little Village Giveaway at my appearance at Odyssey Books in South Hadley tomorrow evening. If you have written a review of my book, and you have not let me know you’d like to enter, please do. If you have been meaning…
Read MoreClosing the Door
Anonymous wrote: What are some of the “secrets” the Amish keep from outsiders? Does the “Pow Wow” type of healing really work? How did it get started? Has it ever been done on/to you? What are some of the confessions you heard made by other Amish in church? Were any of them strange?Who confessed more…
Read MoreThe Amish “Phenomenon” and Women’s Standing in the Community
Karen wrote: When you were in the Amish, were you aware of the fascination the English had with the Amish? When you were around the English in a public setting, did you ever feel like you were a bit of a living museum (for lack of a better description)?It seems as though amish women, although given…
Read MoreAmish Genetics
Deanna wrote: How do they deal with the issue of practically everyone being related? Deanna, this question deserves a longer answer, because it is quite complicated. In my opinion, the Amish are going to need to address this issue, because the gene pool is so very concentrated and becomes more so with each generation. It is…
Read MoreIndoor Plumbing
Deanna wrote: I have so many questions. But I’ll ask two. I didn’t read the other questions (I’m in a bit of a hurry here) so I hope I don’t duplicate. How often do the Amish bathe? I would think that with no electricity, it would be difficult to have enough hot water to make it very…
Read MoreA Full Life
I thought I would get a chance to do another blog posting before now, but life is full for us at the moment. On Saturday, I spoke at the Greenfield Public Library, which was a fun group. People asked very good questions, which is fast becoming my favorite part of my talks. People are curious…
Read MoreAmish Infertility
Joan wrote: How do the Amish deal with infertility and how does this change their lifestyle by not having helping hands.I do not honestly know how Amish deal with infertility. I would guess that it varies from one couple to another, and from one community to another. This is something that they would not necessarily talk…
Read MoreAmish Women’s Head Coverings
Sally wrote: What are the customs of head coverings? I know they vary a bit from community to community, but on the “A Joyful Chaos” blog, Marianne said that she switched from a black one to a white one. I’ve seen little girls, however, wear white, so I’m guessing this is not a universal custom. Also,…
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