The campground folks sure weren’t kidding…this place is as full as a tick. I’m glad we didn’t get back on the road. The rain and fog that was supposed to be for one day…forgot to stop.
Visited a 200 year old grist mill…the teeth of the grinding gears are made out of wood and have lasted all these years. They also had a one room school house, used by the Amish. A lady told us all about it and the education the youngsters receive. There are 180 active one room school houses in Lancaster County. They start school at age 6 and they go through the 8th grade…and that?s it. Even the teachers have no more education then the 8th grade. However, because they hold the schooling they do get very dear..it is a well grounded and respected amount of learning. The kids work hard at it…as their parents expect.
She also talked about “Stepping out”…this is the time from age 16 for girls and 18 for boys…that they find out about the world outside the Amish teachings. They might have a car or go the rock concerts etc. They take this time to decide for themselves if they will be baptized in the church or wait until other life decisions are made. (If they dream of being an airline pilot for instance) The family, as well as the church, will give them all the time they need to make these decisions , because once they are baptized…they can never change their minds about it. If they do break that vow…they are “shunned”…that means no one…not even the close family members will EVER speak one word to them again.
Had our picture taken in AMISH GARB…funny part, of course, is if we “were” Amish we wouldn’t have our pictures taken! Rick looked mighty fetching in his straw hat and suspenders!
There was a note from Ed on our RV door when we got back. The package we sent by UPS has arrived…we were afraid it had been taken. That?s good news because it was the only thing Rick has bought for himself…some antique wood working tools.
I love the names of some of the Amish towns around here…Bird in the Hand, Virginville, Paradise and of course…Intercourse!
There are little tables set outside of many Amish farmhouses ?with what ever was picked from the garden that day. You just choose what you want and leave the money in the jug. We got a big basket of fresh picked tomatoes and jar of home canned Chowchow ( a sweet vegetable relish mix ) on the way home.