Karm and Coke's Big Adventure

 Karm and Coke are about to embark on a big winter adventure. The Amish farmer that raised them asked if I’d be willing to let them come spend the next few months at his place. He still has Karm’s full sister and another mare that is a cousin to both of my horses. My Amish friend is planning to get our horses re-acquainted and hitch them together to do farm work. He has a super nice barn and is better able to winter horses than I am. Not to mention, I deliver mail for a living and winter gets long for my horses when I often don’t get home until after dark.

The downside of all of this: I won’t have my horses here for the next few months. Karm and Coke are the centerpieces of my Amish Horses Blog and Facebook page, so, I won’t have as many new pics of my horses. The upside is that Karm and Coke will be having some big adventures that could turn into fun stories for my books and blog.

When I took Karm and Coke back to their old home, I thought they seemed super comfortable as though they remembered the barn. I stopped in to visit them once already. I whistled and they came right up, expecting me to feed them or let them out to pasture. It feels super lonely at our place without them and I’m already looking forward to the day they come back home.

My little grandson (Isaac, who is 2 and adores Karm and Coke) came to our house a few days ago and asked, “Can we go out and see the horses?”

I told him, “Karm and Coke aren’t here, they’re at my Amish friend’s farm.”

“I know,” Isaac said. He is struggling to understand the whole thing. I told him that I would take him to the Amish farm with me sometime to see the horses. Isaac looked at me with his big brown eyes and said, “Okay.”

Amish Gathering

Amish folks gather together often. If you live anywhere near an Amish community, these sights will be familiar.

Every Sunday morning multiple thousands of horses clip clop down roads around the countryside heading to Amish or Old Order Mennonite church.

That is not the only time they can be seen gathering...

For the most part, Amish people are very social. They gather for birthdays, holidays, school functions, reunions, weddings, and funerals. Funerals are huge! If you are Amish and you knew the person who died, you will most certainly make every effort to be at that funeral. Amish folks hire non-Amish drivers to transport them across the country to the funeral of a friend or relative, or for a family reunion, or a wedding.

Amish teens and young singles gather often for Singings, volleyball and other social events.

If you live close enough to the gathering, you will walk. That is much easier than hitching up a horse and it is pleasant as well. These gatherings all include food! After someone comes for a visit from miles away, in a horse-drawn vehicle, you wouldn't think of sending them away without having something to eat. 

Even the horses are often given some hay to much on while the people visit. (as pictured above)

Amish families often gather for work projects. They gather to help each other build barns and other huge tasks, but they also gather and work together on small jobs. Extended families often join forces on a butchering day. They help each other can food, make applesauce, apple-butter, cider and once it is all made, they gather just for the fun of it and share what they made together.

Most of the Amish I've had the pleasure to know cherish their friends and find a way to meet up for a visit. I will say, if you stop by the home of an Amish friend you'd better not be in a hurry to get somewhere, because most of them love to have a long conversation.

Amish Friends

        Four families are represented in this photo, some were Amish and the rest Mennonite. Our four families were close friends back in those days but times change and we don't see each other as often. These Children are all grown-ups now, (one of the young men has gone home to be with the Lord.) All of our families grew after this photo, and one of them ended up with twelve children.

        The littlest of them is my cover model for Catbird Singing. Yes, believe it or not, that little blondie in the middle with her yellow dress hiked up, is the same girl pictured below between my team of draft horses. She is 25 now!

We always had a great time together and yes, their parents approved us taking a photo. I'm hoping they will get a chance to see this blog, because I know they will really enjoy this picture.

One of these families left the Amish and I see their daughter (the second smallest blond girl) working at a grocery store on my mail route. I like to remind her that she was a little Amish girl when I first knew her.

The family that stayed Amish, moved to Ohio and we don't see them much anymore.

I don't tell any of our Amish friends personal stories in my books. The experiences we had in their homes are the foundation of what I write.

We have found that our Amish neighbors build their lives around faith, family, and friends.

Catbird Singing on Amazon