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In my last post I ended by writing how I think the fact that few Amish question their way of life as being both a strength and a weakness — the strength being cohesion of the group, but the weakness being that without dissidents, there is a tendency towards “groupthink.” Unfortunately, or fortunately, the reason…

Susan J. Reinhardt said: I’m surprised more Amish don’t opt for this sharing arrangement, so they can have the modern conveniences. How common is this? Kate said: As for more churches not living in “english” houses etc. for the sake of convience is kind of depending on the people. For the most part the Amish…

Anniem asked: I had a question. From the line,”Some communities allow their members to use electricity in their homes, so long as they don’t own it.” I wonder what they aren’t to own: the house, the electric bill or the appliance? Thank you for the excellent question, Annie. It is the home itself they cannot…

Earlier I promised you a list of things that I believe are universal among all Amish. I could be surprised on any of these, as I was when I made discoveries while interning with Donald Kraybill. However, as far as I know, the following things are still true. Technology: All Amish have to decide how…

In my Amish community and family, Independence Day was thought of as a modern holiday. Given the Amish don’t consider themselves patriotic, it is not a big holiday. Even still, there is one Fourth of July that will remain in my memory forever. The weather was particularly hot and sultry for several days before the…

We are linked by blood, and blood is memory without language. ~Joyce Carol Oates Recently when I was going through family records, I found a copy of the pages that my mother and her siblings wrote about their memories of childhood. I remember vividly hearing my mother tell a story that happened when she was…

Susan J. Reinhardt wrote: “I find it surprising at the disparity between the Amish in various geographic areas. I’d always assumed the Lancaster Amish were representative of all the Amish communities.” I am still learning about just how diverse the various Amish communities are — and oftentimes in surprising ways. Having grown up Amish, I…

Yanina asked: “What do you think about the Beachy Amish?” and “I was recently in the Beachy Amish website and saw a picture of an African American girl on it. How do the Old Order feel about people of different races and ethnicities?” Yanina, I’m sorry it’s taken me this long to answer your questions. About…

By believing passionately in something that still does not exist, we create it. The nonexistent is whatever we have not sufficiently desired. ~ Franz Kafka More than ten years ago, I began writing down my childhood memories. That was before I learned how to craft my writing. My first versions read much like a diary.…