About four years ago we left the Beachy church that we attended, and joined the land of shrinking doilies and slit skirts. My
whole life I was a child of a minister, Calvary Bible Schooled, Youth Fellowship Meeting attending golden Beachy girl. Here’s what I miss about being Beachy.
1. I miss the Sword and Trumpet, a publication that we got in our church mail boxes. I faithfully read every article. When I confessed to Gene that I miss that little book, he was like, “You mean the magazine with the ugly old men on the cover?” I was all offended and said, THEY CHANGED IT HONEY!! No more old men, just flowers and trees and stuff. AND when you got the Calvary Messenger on the same Sunday, it was like BONUS POINTS! TWO FOR ONE!!
2. I miss getting up in the morning and yanking on a dress. I don’t do well with tons of options, and now its like mm..doesn’t match/too denim/too ugly/too tight/too baggy. And have you seen the Beachy dresses lately? Cute!
3. I miss choral singing. I was at a funeral last week, and a conservative looking family shared in song. I could hum along every song, several parts. And I sat there and thought, “We are losing this rich heritage. My family won’t be able sing like that. They will rely on keyboard accompaniment. How can I teach them to sing all four parts? Will they even know these songs? Waaait a minute…What am I thinking? How did I turn into a middle-aged visiting minister?
4. Here’s a sticky one. I miss the culture. This is hard to explain, so I won’t even try, because I will make them sound like a cross between Susanna Wesley and Rebecca Black. Let’s just say that Beachys are a bunch of saints but they know how to have fun.
5. I miss the Beards. Hang on! How did this one slip in here? Not really. I don’t miss the beards.
PS. For your enjoyment, a picture of Gene and myself while we were still Beachy.
And that dress? Well it was borrowed from my sister who always had cooler dresses than I did.
I wore it once, and than lost it. It literally disapeared and I have no idea what
happened to it. I can only assume someone broke into our vehicle and stole it. I
told you Beachy dresses are cute!
PPS. You call that scruff a beard?
PPPS. Beachy’s can’t wear ties!
Andrea Esh 
my 7 yr old was reading this with me and when i explained about the Beards she said “Even the GIRLS?/!!” we obviously have not introduced them properly to Beachy culture!i love your posts. they are always smart and cutting edge funny!about reason # 3—funny, i just said this same thing to Weldon awhile back—IF we ever leave strict menno ways i would totally miss good old acapella trilling voices. i loved your visiting minister quip.so, which church do you go to?
@lin789 – linda you have NO IDEA how long and loud i laughed at your beard paragragh/comment. 🙂
Andrea, I don’t know you well enough to know if you really are serious about these ‘misses’?? But, for myself, I had n.o. i.d.e.a. about the things I would miss about beachy’s when we got married and joined the church Lee was attending (GH). I talked w/ several other ex-beachy gals there and wondered if they felt some of the things that I did. Yep, a couple of them could identify.Now #2, I can’t say I can identify w/ except the part about their dresses being cute now!! The four part harmony. Oh my goodness, that’s a tough one that I still haven’t worked through. I bout tear up when we go back to dad’s church and hear that good Sunday morning singing. Abbeville has extra good singers though. I think anyway.This is probably warped, but I didn’t like it when I was new to the church and would try to explain who I am to someone. Like I’d say my dad is Ernest H. from Abbeville. Then they look at me real blank and are like “I don’t know that man”. ? Made me feel like I was from another planet. ? …..Another thing that kind of got me was when there’s talk of special meetings and deciding who should come, they’re talking about men I have no clue who they are.I’ve often said, “I had no idea how much being beachy was sort of a mini sub-culture.” I had no idea how much leaving would rock my world. But, it would be hard to go back in a lot of ways….. I love you thoughts.
I probably say this every time, but you are probably my most favorite blogger. And I think it’s kind of neat that you were one of my first friends when I signed up for xanga. I love your honesty and humor. I like your ability to pick up a tricky subject and write about it.I am always keenly interested in hearing the story of why someone chooses to leave the ‘conservatives’. Sorry. Hate that ExTrEmELy relative term but always end up using it for lack of better. So that should be your next post, ok? :)I’ve always been so grateful that my parents didn’t raise us with a narrow-minded view of Christianity, but I know that today they probably wish they had done things differently, as a lot of my family has left many of the principles we were taught. I am among the more conservative ones. And sometimes I chafe. But there are things…ones you mentioned like the simplicity of the wardrobe– and the singing–and others– that I know I would miss like everything. Aside from all that, Dan is not huge on change, even though he has a gentle, accepting, non-judgmental nature with other people.Beachys always were a cut above the rest of us Mennonites. I am reading my old diaries and when we’d take trips back east to visit my Dad’s relatives in PA, I was so impressed by the coolness of the Beachys. 🙂 We visited a Beachy high school in Kansas somewhere and for days I dreamed of finishing my high school years there.And I am quite partial to beards, Beachy or not.If you ever find that dress, I’ll buy it from you.
Ok, I had to laugh… but I am still here, plugging along in the thick of it all and wondering how you could ever miss some of this. If I really allow myself to think about it, I probably would too if we left, but right now it doesn’t seem possible. My one most gripe is the Beachy’s that seem so pious and seem to believe they are THEE only way to be. Oh well, I won’t get started on that. Good post!
I was never Beachy, so I don’t know what I’m missing out on. I used to be kind of intimidated by them! Not as much now that I know them better. I always thought Beachys were the trendsetters among the conservative Mennonites, because wearing solids or almost solids forced them to be more creative. That may be a completely wrong assumption! I came from an ultra conservative Mennonite church, and I can’t really say that I miss too much about it. Other than my friends, but most of them don’t go there anymore, either. We are still cape dress wearing and haven’t switched to veils like most people… I don’t agree with everything at our church, but what drew us in, and what is keeping us here, is the closeness we have with a lot of people. A lot of them are like family! I know if we ever moved or went elsewhere, there would be a lot of things we would miss.
@clearlyhis – I think #2 has more to do with personality than anything. I’m not really into fashion (although I try to look nice and not too 1980s) and figuring out what to wear is more stressful than fun for me. I agree- It is a sub-culture and I’ve totally done the “Bill Mullet from Sugarcreek” and they are staring blankly at me.I was being truthful about what I miss, and I know some of my friends totally do not identify with this, and I don’t know, maybe it’s more that I was an “Invested Beachy”. Could also be that I had a good experience growing up, and not a lot of negative memories, or a lot of pressure.@madisonsmom2 – Really? As a whole,I think they’re open-minded. Maybe absence makes the heart grow fonder @lin789 – trilling acapella voices? You’re hilarious, and when I read your site I think you are the cutting-edge one. In real life I am far from trendy, pretty traditional really.@quiet_hearts – First of all, you are so kind. I really would like to meet you. And yes “Liberal” and “conservative” are so subjective that I almost don’t know what they mean anymore. Dan sounds a lot like Gene. Not big on change, pretty traditional, but still open-minded. Now about writing why we left? I don’t know if I could do that, basically because it seems like it could really make peoples defenses come up. If I can figure a way around that I will. We didn’t leave to become “more liberal” which I feel can be a legitmate reason in itself. –but our story involves a little bit of a “church kerfluffle” sticky to write about for sure. Gene says we left because we wanted to preserve our friendships with the people who were still there, because if we stayed, we might not have been friends for long.
Ok, maybe not the whole of them in general, maybe I’m just grumpy with a few I know like that. 😀
@writersblock02 – “Could also be that I had a good experience growing up, and not a lot of negative memories, or a lot of pressure” absolutely totally agree. After discussing this w/ some of my ex-amish/ex-conservative looking friends, I’m convinced that’s where the difference is. I think that’s why my beachy/anabaptist heritage feels like a treasure that I don’t want to loose. I could really go on and on about this…….
Ok, gotta weigh in. Having a positive childhood experience with being Beachy definitely makes a difference in how you feel about them now in my opinion. That said, I know that personality makes a huge difference too. I think the reason I am able to stay Beachy is that I have never felt like I wasn’t able to think for myself or draw my own conclusions about things. But probably the things I like the most are the 4 part music (which is becoming endangered in our church too), and the sub-culture, although it can be frustrating at times. And I would gladly give you all my “cute” Beachy clothes for the opportunity to buy off the rack!
You know…..While I wasn’t raised in the Beachy church, I was raised in the Brethren church, and I can so relate to so much of what you’re saying.My family was well established in that circle….as in uncle’s and brother, etc in leadership, and so if someone didn’t know who I was, there was always, “…well ______ is my such and such” and then the instant connection. orThe four part harmony thing. Yes!!!!! My family sang a lot together and had a C.D. put together, now I’m in a church that prly has no clue what the term ‘four part harmony’ even means!!! BUT….can I just say that while I miss some of the accapella at times, I love, love, love to be free to clap and raise my hands if I wish. andI actually miss the land of shrinking doilies and slit skirts. That’s what I grew up with and now thoroughly enjoy being able to slip into a pair of jeans or sweatpants. However, I can still feel a longing when I see a mom and her little girl at WalMart or wherever and she has her little skirt on. Not a longing to wear that skirt (cause obviously I can if I want to), but a longing for the ‘security’ that some of that felt like to me.It was fun to read what you wrote here. Love the honesty!
I always thought the beachy’s were so edgy and … wild! I mean, depends on what church they were from … some of them had bangs! Even though I did not come from Beachy … I still miss a few of those things … Hymns, I really miss Hymns. Why does it seem that is spelled wrong?#2 = me
@Sharejoy – You know you’re right on the personality thing. Thanks for putting it out there because it is true. I can hear some of my friends saying what are you crazy, you miss this stuff? @totallycherished – the shrinking doily and slit skirt arena is a sub-culture all in its own. And YES the security thing, I hadn’t thought of it until now–very valid point, and makes me think that maybe I just miss fitting into a certain community, because changing communities is hard. I’m not much of a hand-clapping worshiper myself, but yes, the freedom to do certain things without people looking at you cross-eyed is very freeing. Thanks for your comment!
You are too funny!! Love it!And, you know, you CAN still make dresses and wear them each and every day if you miss that. So don’t complain about that one! I might be the odd ball here. Although I was never Beachy, I was “conservative Mennonite” and I don’t know that I miss much of anything about it. Maybe that’s cuz Beachy’s are Cooler!! Anyway, loved your post.
You are TOO FUNNY!!!!
I’m still beachy … and trying to imagine that I’d miss anything. 😉 I can definitely understand #3 if we’re going to talk about the church I went to before this one where music was a big deal. If we’re going to talk about here where we sing out a hymn book I really do not care for at all and where the residents from the home tend to pick the same song at every hymn sing … well, right now I have a hard time envisioning missing that. 🙂 #4. I understand what you’re talking about with the culture. There are parts of the culture that I chafe at ALL the time. The part where you have to be beachy to be a christian. They won’t say that. They’ll say there are christians everywhere. But let one of them come to our church (like my Pakistani friend) and see if they let her be a member with her traditional scarf headcovering and you’ll find out pretty quickly what they really believe. What is even stranger is that our church is pretty open … you can wear a cap style or a hanging veil … yet hers doesn’t work. There are a million things like that and personally I think it’s “anabaptist recreation” taken too far. But when you look at some of the other culture things … the way people help out other people in need whether it’s a hospital bill or rebuilding a house after a fire or just sending in two meals a week because someone has cancer … that is irreplaceable. Since David has been on the ABC board we’ve discovered how truly open minded beachy churches are compared to a lot of conservative mennonites. So they’re open minded and closed minded at the same time and I think you’d have to be Mennonite of some kind to understand the wierdness of that statement. But the “who knows your family” thing is not just a Beachy thing. There was a family here from Oregon for awhile and they changed their membership to here. She was soooo lonely at weddings b/c she knew no one and no one knew them. Frankly, the fact that no one knew your dad is WAY huger than someone not knowing mine. 🙂 You would think they’d have at least heard of him. 🙂 But I’m afraid I wouldn’t miss the “cute” beachy dresses.I would LOVE to hear the story of why you left, but if you can’t write that, at LEAST do a post on why you think that wanting to be more liberal is a legitimate reason in and of itself. David and I have been talking about that so much the last while. How it is just SOO not okay to change churches just because. It’s like you have to have this “spiritual reason” to present even if it’s not the real reason. And it goes back to the whole thing I was talking about earlier. Oh, yes. We think their christians. Oh yes, they can preach at our church when they visit. But wait? You want to GO to their church? No, you have a spiritual problem and just are not submitting to the cross of Christ.
@smilesbymiles – Michelle? Why don’t you come visit us? Sounds like you talk about the same kind of things we do. Not that we’d have any answers or anything!! Scenarios like you mention with the Pakistani woman just really frustrate me. I personally think our churches would be much more attractive if we had a little more diversity. I better stop right there before I say too much. Anyhow, I’m curious about your statement about Beachys being more open than some conservatives. Just comparing our church to the local Beachy church, I kinda think I know what you might mean, but I’m not sure.@madisonsmom2 – those few people can really kinda have a big influence on a group, though. at least in my experience!
@smilesbymiles – Your last paragraph!!! Yes, yes, yes!! All the way. Tho no matter what reason you give, it won’t be good enough for everyone. Why can’t I go just. because. I want to!!! Ok, I have to quit! 🙂
@writersblock02 – you said something about maybe the reason why you miss some things is because you were “Invested”….and also that, on the whole, it was a good experience. oh, me too, me too. i am still in a “plain”church but not members and we pretty much do our own thing and sometimes i just MISS belonging to something that i truelly believe in. i remember being a teen and just totally giving my “conviction story” on my covering and my cape dress to anyone who asks.and feeling secure in being different. my youth group was my world. and i knew my church like i knew my family. i think even THAT connection is lost in a lot of conservative churches, no matter how big the covering.i am traditional too. and yet i am unconventional and i NEED space.and i always wondered how Beachys pulled it off so well. like, their coverings could be big and their dresses plain but they had STYLE that left me feeling lacking!!
@writersblock02 – and now all i have are questions and melancholy moments for the good old days.
I came here on a recomendation… n have enjoyed sitting here and reading yours and others thoughts on all this. some really good stuff for sure. To what@lin789 – said about never questioning why we did what we did… conviction story n all…. I’ve been thinking about those things too. As much as i had a good experience in the beachy circle and had parents who truely tried their very best to teach us the Bible way…. we.were.not.allowed.to.question.anything. Pretty much that way anyhow. It made me lazy and not have to think about anything really. I just did. I feel now, with having wrestled with this for the past several years, i’m serving a different God. Not really in the sense that God has always been the same, but, in my wrestling, have discovered a God whose way different then i ever thought He was. I will.never.be.the.same and I am so grateful for those years, even though it was/is really tough at times.
Love this post. And I’m laughing because Bill Mullet himself is out here in Oregon at the moment for a week of meetings at our church and before he came everyone was like, “Bill Mullet? Who’s he?” He showed us a picture of his family on the PowerPoint* one evening and a little bell rang in the back of my head. That one daughter, isn’t that…oh what is her real name….yes! It’s WritersBlock!!*Those Beachys, always so cutting-edge with the technology.Anyway. We are enjoying your dad and he’s coming here for supper tonight.I don’t miss being Beachy except I miss the open-mindedness. Severely at times. Believe me, just because you wear prints and listen to the radio doesn’t mean you’re open to new ideas.My take with growing up Beachy/Fellowship Meetings/CBS is that if you were in you were very in, and if you were out you were very out, and it was more fun to be in, but of course I was out, and no one borrowed my dresses at CBS. Still bringing that up in therapy.Laughed the hardest at “How did I turn into a middle-aged visiting minister?”
Well, I stopped by yesterday, but couldn’t come up with a clever comment because my mind was/is too muddled. We are in the process of a church move and I could comment on each of your 5;) points. However, I think there is a “brotherhood first, family second” issue in ‘our’ Beachy church that we have tried and tried to reckon with. And we see now that we really are only one tiny, little squeaky (as in irritating) voice among many louder ones. It is time to move on. Tough or not.Maybe in 5 years I could do a post like this. But not today. You did make me laugh, though. And that’s ALWAYS a good thing. Life can get a leetle too heavy at times.
@lin789 – So sorry I sent you whirling into depression, that was not the intent! We still go to a conservative church (I think it’s conservative anyway) but we’re not members after being there for 3 years. We have just a bit of commitment-phobia. So your situation sounds familiar.If changing communites is hard, changing belief systems or structures is even harder.@dorcassmucker – Get out! The visiting minister is coming to your house tonight? I knew he was “out west” but I wasn’t sure where. Hmmm I’m trying to think of some dirt on him that you could casually bring up at the supper table, and he would be all “HOW does she know this stuff?”@smilesbymiles – I told @quiet_hearts Gene’s reason for leaving. It may have been his reason, but it really wasn’t mine, so in a way that was his quote “spiritual” reason for leaving. It’s funny, soon after we left I was really wishing that someone would ask me why we left, and I could lay it all out truthfully. So thanks ladies, you’re the first people that asked!@singingrachel – Are you still beachy? I think I know what you mean about the questioning, In our experience questioning was maybe looked as rebellion instead of a sincere longing/searching/questioning for what is the truth. I’m not saying that we did all our questioning with a loving spirit either…. Thanks for adding to the discussion, BTW I totally remember the Antrim Chorus singing at our church and I was mezmorized by “that girl that is so gorgeous and can sing so nice”.
@writersblock02 – oh no. i’m not in depression. I’ve become calloused to that. i just miss the simplicity of thinking. yes, a committment phobia here too. mixed with a couple other things. but i DO take my turn and clean the church. does that count for anything? and did you have any idea that this post would become such a hotspot?:)
Thanks to @dorcassmucker – I just found out who you are. The very daughter of Bill Mullet. What a fun connection to make and especially since we are talking about this very thing. You mentioned your dad but i thought you were just using him as an illustration. Are you the oldest or youngest daughter? And yes, you got it about it looking mostly like rebellion when we were only trying to figure things out. Am i still beachy? How do i answer? We are helping to start a community church here in Antrim with my brother Ronnie and are loving it and really excited about this but have not actually pulled our membership yet… so technically, i guess i am. I’m flattered with your kind words.
Supper’s over and my crew behaved in front of the visiting minister, praise God, but now I’ve gotta pay up on the bribes. Just kidding, honest. Heard a funny story about you and the Acrylic Alphabet on signs in Eastern Europe…
Hi Andrea! Just have to keep coming back to check on everyone’s comments. I could add more of my own, but I don’t know for sure what they are. 🙂
Andrea, oh my word, this totally made my day! I must thank Gina (who always has the inside scoop) for referring me to this post! Sooooooo funny! And so many truths! And eye-opening! I had no idea Beachys were so cutting-edge, trendy, or cool! And WHAT? you didn’t have too much pressure? In Holmes County? I thought “they” say this is the pit of peer pressure! And our dresses sound far-out! haha. And all these comments are so interesting, I think I will have to come back and re-read them on Sunday afternoon…so my mom brain can savor them appropriately. Also, the Bill Mullet from Sugarcreek thing, made me laugh long and hard! Like, seriously, who doesn’t know Bill Mullet? (not schputting, either)…and as far as beards, that’s pretty much gone with the wind here. Oh, I think I may have missed some comments, as I see there’s a next/last option up there…gonna have to check that out! Also, your post about Lancaster signs is priceless. 🙂
whew! i didn’t read all the comments to see if someone said this already but you could still subscribe to the sword and trumpet! we do and i love it! even when i don’t agree… i hear you on these things. i have realized that even though our church of notallanabaptist people won’t have mennonite 4 part harmony like a church with all one cultural background, it’s something i’m willing to sacrifice for reaching other cultures for Christ–though i fully expect to teach my own children to pull their part and know how to join in when we go visit Mennonite churches, etc! is that illogical?
oh and i have come to the conclusion that i will always be mennonite…whether i go to a mennonite church or not. it’s my culture, not my religion. isn’t that true for a beachy?
@dorcassmucker – you know I’ve been racking my brain and I can’t think of what happened. Please tell me it wasnt a sermon illustration.@singingrachel – I’m the youngest daughter. Sorry about the awkward question, the timing was a little off!@etisagnax – I don’t feel like the beachy culture will always be in my blood–but the larger mennonite culture has a lot of overlap w/ beachy- and yes I feel like culturally I will always be mennonite.
@writersblock02 – We were talking about travels since your family and ours both seem to have done quite a bit of this and it makes a nice starting point for conversation when you don’t know each other. I also told him I read your blog and he was obviously Very Proud Of You. And he said when you were in Eastern Europe (Ukraine?) where they use the Cyrillic alphabet, you made this “knowledgeable” comment about the Acrylic alphabet on the signs.
Yes, yes, yes! We still get the Sword and Trumpet at my church (and never did at Maranatha) but I MISS the Calvary Messenger. #2 I get all the way, too. I also find it so much easier to just wear a dress. I decided to stick with the dresses most of the time (the majority of the ladies do wear cape dresses, so I’m not too strange :)) It is nice to not be limited to solid colors, but there was even in that a simplicity that I sometimes almost miss. But not quite. We still sing in 4 parts. Or at least try. The singing is not stellar by any means, and the new praise and worship songs are being sung much more, and I even miss the Christian Hymnary. Now THAT is one thing that some people probably won’t understand.The culture. There is no way to really describe the culture differences. I’ve tried. Many times. If you figure it out, please tell me! I’ve been in this area going on 8 years now, and still feel so lost in crowds, whereas if I’d be back in Holmes County I would have scores of people to connect with. And people want to know who I am, and, well, they just don’t know my family. I do love my church family. I really do. And I would have a hard time going back to being Beachy, even though there are things I miss. I only wish I could combine the good things from both denominations and create the perfect church. I realize that perfect for me isn’t perfect for everyone, but I could try, right? :)Thanks for sharing this!
I really enjoy your vocabulary…it creates such a fun kerfuffle in my head, heh!It’s interesting to read about being on the inside or outside of the Beachy community, b/c its so relative. I had to google Beachy to even begin to translate what you’d written. I’m really like standing on Pluto in relation to any Beachy church member…although there’s a Mennonite church just outside of Boston with some very friendly people I met while doing outreach in Harvard Square, Cambridge…they were doing the same (it was a fun connection)!Thanks for sharing your world so articulately!
@god_stories – Yeah, when I wrote this I knew that it would only make sense to conservative mennonites or beachys. Actually the correct name for the Beachy church is Beachy Amish, because we broke off from the Amish, which explains how conservative we/they are. It’s a tightly knit culture as I’m sure you’ve found out.Thanks for taking the time to google it, and for you kind words.
I enjoyed your post – I’m a “Beachy” myself and was raised in the Beachy church. So of course it feels good to hear all the pros of being Beachy. I’ll admit the comments brought me back to reality. (grin)However, I would guess that most people who make a church move (not just conservative churches) can look back and see things that they wish they would have put a “premium on” while they were there. It seems there is a heart issue of discontentment and “the grass is greener on the other side of the fence”. When we get to the other side, we realize some of the benefits. It’s a good reminder to me to look for the things to be thankful for in church life (somehow the negative things can take front seats).I see the fact that you can look back and miss the good things as healthy. I encourage you to find a local body of believers to become a member of and invest your spiritual gifts in building that church. The NT doctrines and ordinances are difficult to “live out” by yourself. I believe Jesus called believers to live out their faith in the context of a local church.As serious followers of Jesus, shouldn’t we have a good reason for making major life changes – whether it be purchases of property, choosing a marriage partner, career, and yes, even church changes??? We are called to take up our cross daily and follow Him so I contend that He wants us to come to Him for direction and leading in all of our decisions. I’m not saying there are no good reasons – please don’t hear me say that – I just noticed a resentment of having to give a reason. End. Of. Sermonette. (My daughter actually told me about your blog and thought I might have a sermon to preach. Hopefully, she won’t be too horrified that I commented, I do most of my preaching at home to my family.)Gina Stoltzfus (okay, I’ll admit I’m a Bishop’s wife – still getting used to that title)
Sooooo…..you were “Beachy when Beachy wasn’t cool”? 🙂 Sorry, had to borrow a line from a country song, lol. It’s nice that you appreciate your heritage even more now. What exactly is Beachy? Is it Amish or Mennonite? I grew up in Southern Indiana, and though I was neither, I was reared very strictly in church. We did have a lot of both Amish and Mennonite (prob spelling that wrong) in the area and I have read a little about it, but have no actual first hand knowledge in the culture. I read a series of Christian novels from the Amish perspective, basically. Pretty interesting people. :)By the way, nice to read you, Andrea. My name is tee. 🙂
@rfs1966 – Thanks for your comment Gina, If your daughter was embarressed tell her not to be. And I’ll tell my mother not to be embarressed either. You have good points, Thanks for commenting!@sweet_sinceritee – Hi Tee! Beachy is alot like Amish and Mennonite, we broke off from the Amish, so a lot of those traditions got carried into our churches. And we like to laugh at all the Amish Novels in the stores these days. Some are true to life, others not so much. Thanks for stopping by.
I just love your writing. I’ve never been Beachy, but grew up Old Order Amish, and now am in the land of the shrinking doilies and slit skirts, well, I try to not wear slit skirts, but yaknowwhatimean.When I first found your blog I figured you were just another cool blogger that lived far away, like Baileyandme2 or smilesbymiles, and that I would never get to meet you. And then I saw your post about Lancaster county signs and my heart was happy. Cause it’s nice to know that there are other people living in good ole’ Lanc Lanc that think just like me.
Thanks for the fun post! Mom told me about it, and I read all the comments. Yes, I’m still Beachy, and it’s comforting to realize that others miss the things I know I’ll miss if I end up marrying outside this subculture.#2 is very much me, except that I know I’d enjoy the variety in my closet (probably too much, which would be hard on the bank account!).#3 – if you come up with a solution, let me know! Four-part singing is waaay at the top of my priority list! But i love musical instruments, too.Oh yes, and I think it’s pretty cool that you’re married to my first-and-a-half cousin. 🙂
I read this fun post awhile ago while we were in the middle of remodeling. I didn’t take time to comment then, but it made my day! Fun, and I totally laughed about the turning into a minister comment–so something part of the culture that you miss (even if it’s just miss ranting about) 🙂 It was a bigger change than I expected to go from Beachy to Mennonite (TX to SC) because I was not quite prepared for the change in culture. And even there quite a few of the older people had Amish or Beachy background, so it wasn’t quite as hard-core Mennonite as some Mennonite churches. It’s just funny to me where their Do Not Cross lines differ. And hearing discussions of why something was right or wrong was crazy when things that are essentials to Beachys are wrong to Mennonites and the other way around. I had always thought that Mennonites were more open minded because they allowed more things, but soon found out that Mennonites thought Beachy’s were more open-minded. In some ways, both are true. Now that I’m in neither culture I miss more and different things. The singing is the biggest thing. Even though I love that you don’t have to be self-conscious if you wiggle too much, and what would be very-bad child church behavior is now exceptionally-good church behavior, there are things I miss about the services. I haven’t gone to worship for months because the noise level is literally abrasive. So, yeah, I really, really miss 4-part singing, and discussions that are stimulating. And the Calvary Messenger (although Dad gave us a gift subscription now.) 🙂 I never did read the Sword and Trumpet because of how boring it looked with the old men faces. Now when I go home, I do like reading them. Well, since I’m just chatting away, shall we grab some popcorn? That’s surely a Sunday afternoon tradition–:)