Living Around the Amish

Living Amonst the Amish ©

By Dee Gatrell

I have been reading Barbara Cameron’s book, A TIME TO HEAL, QUILTS OF LANCASTER COUNTY. I find it a very interesting book. The heroine’s grandmother is Amish, but the heroine isn’t.

When we lived in Ohio in the Mansfield/Galion area we lived near the Amish. Running across a buggy in the dark terrified me as they aren’t easy to see in spite of the orange triangle on the back of them.

People often think the Mennonite are the same as the Amish, but they aren’t. They can wear colorful clothing, drive cars and have electricity in their homes. Their cooking, to me, tastes better. There is a restaurant in Hartville that used to be tiny. Last visit we had to Ohio we went looking for it. It’s now a big place where they sell Howard Miller grandfather clocks and other items. Their food is good old fashioned farm cooking.

Taking a drive to Sugar Creek  will take you back many years. If you ever get to Ohio, make a trip there. It’s a small village, but they have unique restaurants and little shops with souvenirs, trail bologna and Swiss cheese that you won’t want to leave without buying.

One of the restaurants has an area outdoors where you wait for the clock to strike on the hour and these miniature wooden people come out and dance and play the Swiss music.

When my husband was being transferred to Florida, we had our woods looked at to see if the trees were mature enough to sell. An Amish man was sent to our ten-acres to look them over. My youngest son, Doug, was about twelve years old at this time. When I told him there was an Amish man in our woods, he quickly put on his coat and boots and headed out.

The older man didn’t mind that Doug found him. He spent time with Doug explaining to him about being Amish. Really, I always regretted that I didn’t tag along to hear him talk. But Amish weren’t new to me. I had seen them here and there all my life. And my Dad used to tell tales about visiting with them.

Reading Barbara’s book brings back those memories. I used to find Amish and Mennonite books for my aunts who loved reading them. I know they would’ve loved reading Barbara’s books.

If you want a good read, find one of Barbara’s Amish books. You won’t be disappointed.