Saturday, April 23, 2011

Answering Questions ~ Part Six

Do Amish churches have denominations ?

I believe this question was answered here.

Which version of the Bible do they read?
Their German Bible is the Martin Luther version. They use the King James Version when they use English.

Hi there! I was just wondering if you folks had indoor plumbing. I believe that my Amish neighbors in Crawford County, PA do not...but I know lots of others do. Also, did you folks have windshields or rear-view mirrors in your buggies? Were BBQ grills permitted?

Yes, we had indoor plumbing.  "Windshields" in buggies are called storm fronts and yes we had those as well as mirrors on our buggies.

BBQ grills were okay in our community as long as they used charcoal.

I would like to know, the secret to growing celery. My celery growing attempts in the garden have not been too successful. Our family still serves it at weddings, something his grandparents and parents did, and it has just stayed in the family.

Sorry, I can't help you on this one. Our family wasn't very fond of celery and therefore didn't raise it.

Also, how do the Amish keep their stock tanks and chicken waters from freezing in the winter, without the aid of heatlamps and water heaters??? We farm, and loose power every winter and struggle over this one. We can keep the house warm, cook with wood, heat with wood, but can't seem to figure out how to keep the horses, live stock and chickens in water.

If stock tanks and chicken waterers are kept in freezing conditions there is no way to prevent the water from freezing. It takes a lot of ice chopping during the winter unless your barn is kept above freezing.  (All part of the simple life.)

Did you have a time of "rumspringa?" And if so, what did you do?

Personally I don't like the phrase rumspringa since the public latched onto it and distorted the whole meaning. Yes, I had a time of rumspringa. We had Sunday evening hymn singings.  Rumspringa is not a time to decide whether or not to be Amish and it does not end when you become a member of the church. It ends once you get married or decide to remain single for the rest of your life.

You have said that 2 of your brothers have left the Amish, as well as yourself. How many siblings do you have? How about your Husband's family. Have any of them left?

I have five brothers. My husband has three brothers and one sister. His sister and one of his brothers have left the Amish as well.

I hope I am not late in asking....Do Amish have set days for chores like laundry etc and what is the schedule? Or is it different in each community?

There are no rules about when you do certain things. Schedules are made by each family to suit their specific needs and life.

What kind of stove did ur parents have when u were growing up, a gas or a kerosene?

We had a Pioneer Maid wood stove and also several kerosene stoves to use during the summer.

Also did u have a gas or kerosene fridge?

Neither. Our refrigerator was a chest freezer that we converted to a refrigerator by putting a large specially made stainless steel pan in the bottom with coils of  freon filled copper pipe along the sides. We filled it with water and then had an engine run an ice compressor which made lots of ice and kept everything nice and cold. We had built shelves into the freezer but used to set our milk into the icy water which kept it delightfully cold. We also floated bowls of food on the water if we needed something to chill quickly.

The worst part of this type of refrigerator was siphoning the water out every month and cleaning it.

Others in the community had a regular refrigerator with their stainless steel pan in the top freezer compartment. Those never kept the food as cold though.
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This concludes the Q&A series. Back to regular posting next week. Hope you all have a very nice Easter!

14 comments:

  1. Dear Joyful, thank you for answering my question. I really appreciate it.

    One more question please.

    Do the Amish celebrate Christmas and Easter?

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  2. I've really appreciated hearing your answers to all the questions. I have to say in ways I think the Amish have a wonderful way of life as far as simplicity and modesty go, but I wouldn't embrace their religious traditions, either. Wishing you and your family a wonderful Easter.

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  3. I really enjoyed your questions and answer series. I hope you will think about doing it again. I learned a lot.Thank you.

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  4. I have enjoyed reading everyones questions and your answers.
    So interesting!
    Hope you and your family have a great Easter Weekend!

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  5. You were so gracious in answering all those questions! Thanks!

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  6. I've enjoyed reading these questions and answers, thanks!

    I just wanted to add something to the stock tank freezing issue.. my DH has built a wood fired heater he keeps in ours in the winter. If it is REALLY cold, it will still ice over, but doesn't get so thick it's hard to break up. Saves on electricity, and makes it so if it's off we don't have a big problem! :)

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  7. I like this question and answer format. Thanks.

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  8. I'm enjoying the questions and answers. I always wondered about Rumspringa and appreciate your answer to that question. Seems the "Rumspringa" the general church population celebrates never ends. :(

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  9. Thank You for answering all the questions.as other have said I appreciate the simple way of Amish living...but would never be able to tolerate the religious end...:)
    ~~HUGS~~

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  10. It was interesting reading your replies. Thanks for sharing!

    Also... Happy Easter.

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  11. Thanks for being so open and informative about the Amish people and how they live.
    What I like the best, is that you show respect to your roots and goodwill, even though you have been shunned by your parents and community.
    Makes me think there's a lot good to be said about the Amish culture.
    I wonder if my church or my lifestyle would stand that tall after rounds of questioning.
    Happy Easter Sunday to you and your husband.
    God bless you now and every day.
    From felisol

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  12. Mary Ann I am playing catch up once again. I have read all 6 'q&a' ... how sweet of you to educate us even more, of your family & Amish community living. It is quite interesting to have a wee step inside, from our outside world.

    A lady brought 2 Amish women to my home a couple years ago to see & buy from my 3,600 vintage feedsacks. They were interesting to chat with & they were amazed at the computers my hubby had & our TV. They were going to create a quilt for the lady who brought them here.

    May your Easter dbe full of love, warmth & blessings, sweet friend.

    TTFN ~ Marydon

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  13. Thank you for answering so many of our questions! I hope you never grow tired of our curiosity regarding your former Amish life. If you do, that's okay, too. Your blog is delightful with or without the occasional Q&A sessions.

    We had a wonderful Resurrection Day. We made Resurrection Rolls for breakfast then went to church where the service was so powerful, and then to Mom's (my dad passed on nearly 6 years ago) for dinner with the family. I hope yours was equally wonderful.

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  14. Thank you for sharing the video "Be Still" and answering questions.

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Thank you so much for taking time to comment. I love hearing your thoughts.