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Amish Furniture, Amish Handmade
Quilts, Amish Primitive and Rustic Country Decor, Amish Handmade Baskets
We are located in the heart of Ohio.
Every weekend we travel over an hour to "Mom and Dad's" for one type of family
function or another. We travel on old country backroads through an Old
Order Amish Community; however, it is located where there is just no marketplace
for tourism. The Amish in that area have been referred to as "Dusty"
Amish which means that they are the "poorer" Amish.
The Amish children still pack up the horse buggies with baked
goods, eggs, fresh produce, and baskets where they
take them to sell along the roadside every weekend. We have seen these
children travel in their horse and buggy over a 15-mile distance
one-way (in other terms: 4 hours each way) just to find potential customers.
We are unable to control the lack of tourism by taking the tourists
out to see their outstanding products and stimulate the economy, but we
do have the technology and honor of giving their handcrafted items
"worldwide" exposure! This site puts the Amish in your back
yard. Please help us to help them!
Amish Grace and Forgiveness
The Amish are very strong in their religious
convictions. It is amazing watching the way the Amish communities (near and
far) come together when there is a death or wedding. We attended a funeral
for a 6 year old little Amish boy who was the son of one of our basket makers.
He was a special needs child who was unable to talk, walk, or sit up. He
did, however, have some of the biggest smiles that could take your breath
away. His parents and brothers and sister were so wonderful with him. When
little David would get fussy, his mother would rock him and sing him songs in
German and he would quiet down and just watch her. We knew that David wasn't
going to be in this world with us much longer, so we decided to visit the
family on a Saturday before Easter three years ago and got to spend a little
time with him. Sadly, we got the news that he passed away on Easter Sunday.
We attended his funeral where Amish family members came from other counties
and states all over. We were the only English people attending this funeral.
It was unlike any funeral we have ever attended.
Let me back up a little.
The funeral was held on a Tuesday. On Monday I had a doctor appointment that
was 2 hours from my home. I don't know what made me decide to drive our
truck, because I never drive the truck, I always drive the car. I had went to
my appointment and while I was there I had received a voice mail message on
my phone and could tell it was the brother-in-law of David's family. He
didn't leave a message but I could hear him say to his neighbor (whose phone
he was borrowing) that I was not there. I had a feeling he had tried to call
me to let me know something had happened to David. On my way home I came
across a deer that had been hit, was still alive, but could not stand or use
it's back legs. The Highway Patrol came and put the deer out of its misery
and loaded it in the back of my truck. I continued home while stopping at the
home of David's family. There were many other Amish family and community
members there. I learned many things that day about the Amish that I had not
known before. They do not hug to console as we "English" do. I had attempted
to hug the father and he immediate shook his head no and reached his hand out
for a handshake. Members in the Amish community step in and take over chores
and stay with the family until the funeral is over. The belongings that are
in the house are removed and the church benches are brought in so people can
sit and talk. The bedroom that the deceased is in is completely empty with
the exception of two hard back kitchen type chairs that has a board stretching
from one seat to the other seat and the body is laying on it. Since the
temperatures were still very cold and little David was very small and fragile,
they chose not to embalm him. There are dark curtains that cover the windows
of the room where the body lies. When a person goes in to pay their respects,
the curtains are pulled back so you can see them. The room is kept very cool
and dark. The funeral is held at the family's home where the deceased lived.
That family is responsible to provide food for all of the people who come in
to attend the funeral. This family was very poor and did not have much. I
truly believe that the opportunity to pick up the deer after it got hit and
give it to this family was a gift from God. An Amish neighbor took the deer
and processed it for the funeral the next day. I was told later that the
family wasn't sure how they were going to feed everyone and that every bit of
the deer was used for the purpose of the funeral. It's amazing how God
provides! The funeral was 3 hours long and the women were separated from the
men (in different rooms of the house) and the immediate family was in the main
room. The bishop and one of the ministers from that Ordung are the ones who
held the service. We only understood a few words throughout the whole
service. We feel blessed to be included in the Amish community. We have
helped David's family move from Ohio to Missouri and we have visited them and
the children often.
The whole world has had the
opportunity to see Amish forgiveness and grace in 2006 during the tragic
shooting at the West Nickel Mines Amish Schoolhouse that took place in the
Amish Community of Nickel Mines, PA. The Amish believe in forgiveness and
that the only just judgement comes from God alone. As seen in an article by
the Associate Press "The forgiveness extended by the Amish community to
the Roberts family was noted around the world. The Amish did not wish such
publicity for doing what Jesus taught and want to make sure that glory is
given to God for that witness. Many from Nickel Mines have pointed out that
forgiveness is a journey, that you need help from your community of faith and
from God, and sometimes even from counselors, to make and hold on to a
decision to not become a hostage to hostility. It is understood that hostility
destroys community."
The Amish are very
disciplined and gentle people. The Amish do not believe in fighting or in war.
We live in a world of chaos and could do well to learn from the Amish.
This store is packed full of authentic
rustic Amish wares, including all types of baskets. In fact, there
is a basket for every budget. If you live in the country or like
to decorate your rustic home, log cabin, or garden with handcrafted
Amish items, this is the place to find most of the crafts for your primitive
furniture and landscape decor. We have the privilege of accessing a
variety of quality handcrafted Amish items that can be passed on to
you. Beautiful and unique products made by Amish families,
including the young children, are added regularly to our store.
I consider myself a normal person in
the fast-paced world, probably just like you. We have our luxuries that we
take for granted and never even notice we have them unless we have a power
outage. Through my relationship with the Amish, and my desire to learn
more about their customs and work ethic, I recently offered my
services to assist one of the families of fourteen (14) on their small
family farm. I was soon regretting that decision. I found
myself assisting the young Amish children, ages 7 through
13, in throwing wheat sheaves onto a horse drawn hay wagon
. Needless to say, the young Amish children put me to shame. I
could not keep up! I have learned that the Amish are very hard
working and decent people with an unbelievable work ethic .
The Amish are trained from a
very young age that if a job is worth doing it is a job worth doing right.
That instilled value is what makes their products so special. The Amish
live a very simple life with minimal furnishings in their homes. It
goes without saying that there are no refrigerators, televisions, computers,
radios, electricity, telephones, fans, etc. What took me by surprise was
finding there are no pictures, doilies, what-knots, or even couches inside
their homes! An Amish home is furnished with wooden
beds, handmade quilts, basic dressers, a kitchen table with
a few hardwood chairs, and wooden floors without even a throw
rug. The families within this area are carried in a black buggy
type carriage, which is pulled by horses. It is not unusual to
see a young boy around the age of 9, controlling a team of horses
pulling him around a field on a wagon or buckboard. These wagons
have wooden wheels with large spokes or thick steel wheels.
The wagon wheels have to be sturdy in order to carry logs to the sawmill
or hay to the barn. The Old Order Amish do not use rubber
on their wheels; many of the hubs are made of wood, sarvin
hubs, flush hubs, or other types of hubs that have been used for
centuries. A metal band (steel tire rim) actually rolls on
the roadway. The wheels are a lot like the western wheels shown
on the covered wagons except a little bit more narrow.
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