Plain Folk

After our excursion to Chicago we traipsed over to Bremen, Indiana to visit with some beloved relatives. My aunt and uncle live near an Amish community so we drove around the area. Talk about a week of extremes. Going from skyscrapers and incessant traffic noise to the serene setting of Amish farms was a serious contrast.

I find myself strangely attracted to the Amish life. I have read many books about their culture and find it fascinating. I also think it would be much easier to decide what to wear every day.

I find myself wondering, though, do their children act up the way that mine can? Do they have the same parenting issues. My guess is no.

We have been having a very difficult time with Spencer. He is 3 1/2 and lately he cannot go to a store without having a melt down. We are careful not to buy him things when we are out. When I am grocery shopping I tell the children that we are only shopping for food (Kiley often tries to find the loophole here) and not to ask for anything! That doesn't stop Spencer, however. My only solution is that I will limit his time in retail stores and the minute he starts to throw a fit we will leave, even if that means having to go back later by myself.

Back to the Amish, now. I think what I crave about their life is simplicity. I have gone through the house recently to weed out the 'stuff' that we just don't need. I am shocked at how much there is to go to donate. I find it difficult to reconcile the notion that there are things that many people live without every day, yet I have a dependency on them. Like my coffee maker and microwave. I don't feel guilty about using those things, I am just curious about living without electricity, cars, and immediate gratification.