Friday, February 17, 2006
MAY....2005
For our annual Rockenbach get-to-gather we decided to meet in Iowa at the Amana colonies. I had not been to them and always wanted to visit the area. Rocky and I drove to Marie and Harold’s home in St. Louis and spent the night with them, then the four of us rode together from there to the colonies the next day. We had rooms reserved at one of the motels where we met Richard and Helen who drove in from Illinois.
I think the Rockenbach kids have invented a good way of seeing one another and incorporating a different location each time for added interest. Since it is not at one of our homes, we gals are on vacation for the time we’re together and enjoy eating at different places, shopping, sight seeing…..and just plain being with one another.
Most of us think of the Amish as being basically in Pennsylvania but they have spread across the country from necessity. A very nice man drove us around in his tour bus and was telling us about the Amish way of life. He had been Amish but explained that he wanted to go on with his education and would need to drive a car to the public high school. Traditionally, Amish children are schooled up to the eighth grade which is in a building on their property and taught by an Amish teacher. It was at that time in his life that Frank became a Mennonite.
After riding around a while he stopped at the bakery and we went in for delectable doughnuts, sweet rolls and coffee. I bought some beautiful sounding wind chimes from their gift shop for a souvenir. Later on we stopped again at a dairy and made several purchases there. I snapped a picture of a black buggy and black horse hitched to it in front of the dairy.
As we rode along we enjoyed seeing farmers disking their fields with teams of horses and seeing lines of laundry hung out to dry in the sun. It’s hard to imagine life without electricity. No washing machines as we know them… or dryers……but there was one slight discrepancy when it came to tractors. Frank, our tour guide, said they were allowed to have tractors but only if they had steel wheels. They couldn’t have rubber tires. Most, it apeared, still used horses. He also told us that they were allowed to ride in a car driven by someone else if it was to the doctor or to a funeral. He grinned and said, “We have good doctors here but they want to go to a doctor in a big town so they can shop.” It seems we are all guilty of bending our religion when it is beneficial.
There are something like seven colonies grouped together which make up the Amish area….each like a small town. We tried several different places to eat but I’ll have to confess, the food didn’t come up to my expectations. It was expensive and not very tasty. The bread and sweets at the bakery were the best. Some years ago, a friend of mine brought me a bottle of rhubarb wine from there…..it was sweet and delicious. I’d been thinking about that all these years since and had a glorified notion of getting some of the same. I did buy two bottles but sadly it was sour and I was not able to taste any rhubarb flavor at all. I guess it’s hard to livie up to a memory.
Of course if you visit an Amish community anywhere, you must find a quilt store and see their quilts. Their craftsmanship is excellent and the quilts are truly works of art. However, as with any genuine art-form, they are expensive so save your money before you go. Richard and Helen bought a very nice crib quilt for their granddaughter while we were there.
The Rockenbach’s are all basically retired. Richard and Helen, Marie and Harold all do community service and Rocky and I work part time at something we enjoy. The six of us have different talents, interests, backgrounds and life experiences…..and so when we are together there are volumes of conversation. I knew the Rockenbach kids and their parents when we were all in various levels of school and have rejoined them in our retirement years. I’m very happy to have them in my life again………and Helen and Harold make the package complete.
May slipped away quietly……leaving me one year older……..
Until the next time,
Essentially Esther
I think the Rockenbach kids have invented a good way of seeing one another and incorporating a different location each time for added interest. Since it is not at one of our homes, we gals are on vacation for the time we’re together and enjoy eating at different places, shopping, sight seeing…..and just plain being with one another.
Most of us think of the Amish as being basically in Pennsylvania but they have spread across the country from necessity. A very nice man drove us around in his tour bus and was telling us about the Amish way of life. He had been Amish but explained that he wanted to go on with his education and would need to drive a car to the public high school. Traditionally, Amish children are schooled up to the eighth grade which is in a building on their property and taught by an Amish teacher. It was at that time in his life that Frank became a Mennonite.
After riding around a while he stopped at the bakery and we went in for delectable doughnuts, sweet rolls and coffee. I bought some beautiful sounding wind chimes from their gift shop for a souvenir. Later on we stopped again at a dairy and made several purchases there. I snapped a picture of a black buggy and black horse hitched to it in front of the dairy.
As we rode along we enjoyed seeing farmers disking their fields with teams of horses and seeing lines of laundry hung out to dry in the sun. It’s hard to imagine life without electricity. No washing machines as we know them… or dryers……but there was one slight discrepancy when it came to tractors. Frank, our tour guide, said they were allowed to have tractors but only if they had steel wheels. They couldn’t have rubber tires. Most, it apeared, still used horses. He also told us that they were allowed to ride in a car driven by someone else if it was to the doctor or to a funeral. He grinned and said, “We have good doctors here but they want to go to a doctor in a big town so they can shop.” It seems we are all guilty of bending our religion when it is beneficial.
There are something like seven colonies grouped together which make up the Amish area….each like a small town. We tried several different places to eat but I’ll have to confess, the food didn’t come up to my expectations. It was expensive and not very tasty. The bread and sweets at the bakery were the best. Some years ago, a friend of mine brought me a bottle of rhubarb wine from there…..it was sweet and delicious. I’d been thinking about that all these years since and had a glorified notion of getting some of the same. I did buy two bottles but sadly it was sour and I was not able to taste any rhubarb flavor at all. I guess it’s hard to livie up to a memory.
Of course if you visit an Amish community anywhere, you must find a quilt store and see their quilts. Their craftsmanship is excellent and the quilts are truly works of art. However, as with any genuine art-form, they are expensive so save your money before you go. Richard and Helen bought a very nice crib quilt for their granddaughter while we were there.
The Rockenbach’s are all basically retired. Richard and Helen, Marie and Harold all do community service and Rocky and I work part time at something we enjoy. The six of us have different talents, interests, backgrounds and life experiences…..and so when we are together there are volumes of conversation. I knew the Rockenbach kids and their parents when we were all in various levels of school and have rejoined them in our retirement years. I’m very happy to have them in my life again………and Helen and Harold make the package complete.
May slipped away quietly……leaving me one year older……..
Until the next time,
Essentially Esther
