Our Whirlwind Tour of the Midwest - 2 Amish town

Amish town was not part of our scheduled "Tour," but I'm so very happy that we stopped by for a couple of hours that Monday afternoon. At the first sight of an Amish woman gardening with her young son, I felt like we were Conquistadors invading the natives. Our loud van with loud children, engine and DVD player seemed too much for such a peaceful community.

This is not a typical stop sign in Amish town, but Hans got a kick out of the idea.

Hans also liked the idea of new age alternative fuel, (Toyota Prius) parked next to the old.

Conrad was inspired in this town as well. He has decided to practice his future veterinary medical career in the Amish communities. He loves the idea of bartering his services for food and livestock. I say more power to him. He'll have his year supply of wheat in no time.

This was the 1st time none of us minded an exceptionally slow driver.

(I took this by just putting my camera out through the front passenger window, while we were driving. We were amazed when we looked at the picture on the computer that you can see the man's face in the side view mirror (click on the photo - it's great). I'm sure the guy was sighing and thinking, "tourists!")

I had a sense that they probably don't like the paparazzi (I found out later that the Amish do indeed avoid being photographed), so this photo was taken by me, through the car (as Hans leaned back and rolled down his window, all while we were driving by slowly and inconspicuously (as a Kia minivan in Amish country can get). We're amazed it turned out. This was the only shot we had!

These bird houses were everywhere. My thought is, the houses keep the birds out of the barn. Just a guess.

These lilies grew abundantly wild by the side of the road

As we passed by the many green fields & white homes, we figured Monday must be laundry day because the clothes lines were filled with white, black, & blue clothes, which blew effortlessly in the wind. It was all so tranquil to watch. This was the most thought provoking trip I've ever been on. The idea of rejecting modern day distractions, so that one has more time to focus on family, is beautiful.
Don't worry, I'm not going to convert, but I needed this experience to shock me back into caring more about people and less about things and myself. I am humbled by the Amish community and hope I can focus on what is truly most important. My family.