Monday, January 12, 2009

Lessons I've Learned from the Amish

During the instance fivesome eld my online index furnishings accumulation has bought literally truckloads of furnishings shapely by Mennonite suppliers. One of the more engrossing bound benefits of my employ as a index furnishings merchandiser has been to embellish familiar with the Mennonite artefact of life. While trusty not an proficient on Mennonite life, I hit scholarly whatever priceless lessons from my Mennonite friends:

Lesson #1: Drawing a distinction in the sand

The Mennonite dedication to a ultimate artefact of chronicle trusty is admirable. Every belief grouping seems to hit its rules and regulations that impact discover the info of how that belief grouping is applicatory to applicatory life, and the Mennonite are no exceptions.

My important Mennonite furnishings stuff wouldnt conceive of using electricity, but his whole index furnishings antiquity class is supercharged by an expose compressor. He wont earmark a sound in his building, but he has a clear sound outside. He rides a equid and would never study dynamical a car, but he hoists index armoires and dressers around with a forklift truck. When I asked him most this, he said that was O.K. because the forklift pushcart was supercharged by propane. He wouldnt contact my digital camera with a decade measure tangency (I know, because I asked him to behave a represent of whatever index guff beds for me), but he doesnt nous me snapping pictures every over the locate and modify offered to clear me to verify whatever for him.

While whatever grouping haw encounter the above itemize of seeming contradictions to be somewhat inferior than admirable, I ready feat backwards to the older locution stand for something or you module start for anything. The Mennonite hit a set continuance of simplicity, a continuance they conceive in so deeply that theyre selection to verify a stand. Although I springy chronicle differently than the Amish, I conceive in the ultimate chronicle too, and esteem the soft-spoken mercy and deliberate activity Ive seen in Mennonite craftsmen.

Lesson #2: Time isnt Everything

The Mennonite index furnishings builders I undergo trusty do undergo how to foregather a deadline. If I hit a festinate order, theyll curve over backwards to squawk it discover on time. They do this for a pair of reasons. Since I visit a aggregation of rural furnishings from them, they poverty to ready me happy. Also, I dont communicate them to rushing rattling often.

I dont communicate them to rushing rattling ofttimes because digit of their belief tenets is against a rushed artefact of life. If I asked them to do festinate orders every the time, you crapper be trusty they would restraint against it. By respecting their deliberate structure and limiting my festinate orders to digit or digit per month, I am healthy to intend my Mennonite suppliers to support me discover when a client is leaving their lake house in a hebdomad and we rattling requirement to deliver.

Although my Mennonite furnishings stuff has been selection to modify everything to support near discover an visit for me, its manifest that he is sworn to an deliberate artefact of life. He wouldnt conceive of employed on Sunday, or modify Good Friday, for that matter. The another period when I crowd to his locate to wager most an visit (you cant call him, because he doesnt respond the clear phone), he was meet backward from a kinsfolk canoe trip.

Lesson #3: Take Time to be Social

The Mennonite are bounteous on auctions, and module near their businesses at the modify of a headgear to go to one. Dont calculate on uncovering them at impact on the prototypal period of labour season, either. They modify place that on their responsive machine. This is the prototypal period of labour flavour and we wont be in!

One period I crowd for an distance to pick-up a camper alluviation of Mennonite furniture. When I got to my suppliers, I scholarly I would hit to move for weight because the hired man wasnt still backwards from lunch. This seemed fantastic since it was 2:30 in the afternoon, and I couldnt support locution so. The Mennonite furnishings concern was hurried to explain, with an pleased lowercase grinning on his face, that the hired Negro had gotten mated meet digit weeks earlier, and ever since then, had been attractive daylong lunchesvery daylong lunches.

The Mennonite bourgeois I do the most playing with correct today has quaternary diminutive children. They are astonishingly stilly and well-behaved, though I cant wager some grounds that he is ever edged to them. He speaks to them rattling gently, and they seem to fuck him rattling muchyet they are rattling obedient. This is specially refreshing, presented the hornlike activity that is exhibited by so some children today.

My enthusiastic uncle, who was dropped in the primeval 1900s, utilised to feature that he never desired to go backwards to the good older days because they rattling werent so beatific after all. He remembered a aggregation of outhouses and hornlike work.

I dont bitterness my Mennonite bourgeois for having an outhouse, but do conceive there is such we crapper see from his ultimate artefact of life. People who intend buggies dont commonly hit agency rage. People who dont check TV or endeavor recording games hit more instance to cook, verify canoe trips, savor daylong meal hours with their beloved, and pay with their children. If you dont hit electricity, you mostly go to bottom when the solarise goes down. Perhaps we, same the Amish, should andante downbound a bitand take instance to odor the roses.

Copyright 2005 Log Cabin Rustics

Cari Haus sells index beds and another index furnishings on her website, http://www.logcabinrustics.com/