A HARD DAY OF WORK
(A Day in the Life of an Amish Girl)
Katie woke up with a start as she heard her father calling her. Still sleepy, she paused, pulling the homemade quilt up under her chin, but knowing the trouble she would get in for not getting up, she jumped out of bed. Her bare feet hit the cool, wooden floor. She loved going barefoot—shoes were for school and church, her father said. She pulled a dress over her head—her brown one—and ran downstairs to start her morning chores.
Although she was only 6, Katie’s family needed her to help with the work they had to do. Unlike many other families, who have cars and electricity, they were Amish. They kept their lifestyle plain and simple. They worked by daylight, and in the evening, if they needed extra light in the house, they used kerosene lanterns and oil lamps. They had a horse and buggy for going to town and to church. Church was held every other Sunday at a house. Members of their church district took their turn each year at hosting the service.
Katie said good morning to her mother, who was taking care of the twins, still babies. Her younger sister Caroline was helping to entertain them. Katie ran out to the barn, and sat down on the milk stool to milk the two cows she was responsible for. She liked the zinging sound of the milk going into the tin pail. She was careful not to spill a drop—the milk was needed to feed the baby calves.
After she was done, she went back inside, and her mom combed her hair into two neat braids. She put on her white starched covering with two long strings, and then helped get breakfast ready. Her mother had made pancakes and sausage, and served them with Amish peanut butter, a creamy mix of peanut butter, Karo syrup, and marshmallow crème. The table was all set, and her family was gathered around—Mom and Dad, her older brother Jacob, Caroline, and the twins—but before they ate, they bowed their heads and prayed.
After breakfast, Katie helped her mother knead the dough for bread. She liked the smell of the yeast and the feel of the warm, soft, dough in her hands. Next, her mom made four pies—two each of shoofly and cherry. Katie wrinkled her nose at the thought of cherry pie—she didn’t like the tart flavor. She preferred the sweet molasses of the shoofly pie. Sometimes, when there was leftover pie dough, her mother let her make a small half-moon pie for herself. A half-moon pie was just a small circle of dough with pie filling in the middle, folded in half and baked like a pocket. This morning, Caroline got the extra dough because Katie needed to go out to the garden and weed her patch of vegetables.
Every summer, Katie’s family planted a big garden to grow their own produce. Her mother canned and froze what was left from fresh eating, and they had garden-fresh food all winter long. This year, her parents had let her plant her own plot of ground within the garden. Katie had chosen carrots and radishes, and she had even planted some flowers. Marigolds were her favorite because of their colors—golden yellow and orange. She liked bright colors, and wished she could wear them. The bishop of the church said that bright colors were worldly and forbid anyone from wearing them. Katie was afraid that if she did wear a bright dress, she might be proud, and being proud was sinful.
The sun’s warmth washed over her as she stood up after hoeing a row of carrots. She peered into a field nearby, and saw her father and Jacob with the team of workhorses and the cultivator. They were cultivating the acres and acres of corn they had planted a month ago. Katie wished it were time to harvest the hay already. She loved going along. If she promised to hold still and not get in the way, her father let her sit up on a hay bale with Jacob as he held the reigns for the Clydesdales. She loved to watch those horses, but because they were so large, she was afraid they would step on her with their huge, heavy hooves! She also like haying time because it was exciting to see the men from church help with the baling machine the horses pulled through the field. Their good-natured shouts made her feel good, and the freshly cut hay smelled so sweet.
Just as Katie finished weeding her flowers, she heard her mom call her inside for lunch. She put her garden tools away and ran into the house. It was cool and dark, and felt good compared to the heat of the garden. Her family didn’t have air conditioning or electricity for fans, but they knew how to manage the hot days of summer by keeping the window shades pulled down. The scent of the bread baking was fresh in the air, and the pies were cooling on the countertop. Katie hoped for a nice slice of shoofly pie for dessert. For lunch, her mother had fixed cold bread-and-milk soup, with bananas sliced into it and sugar sprinkled on top. She also served homemade applesauce, and bread and applebutter.
After lunch, her mother let her play with Caroline as soon as they got the twins to fall asleep for their afternoon nap. When the twins finally shut their eyes, the girls lay them down in their crib, grabbed their rag dolls, and headed outside to play underneath the shade of the large oak tree in the front lawn. One of their favorite games was playing house. Katie liked to take charge of the kitchen. She used acorn caps for dishes and leaves for placemats. Playtime went quickly, and soon her mother called for them to return to the house. Her dad and Jacob would soon be done with the barn chores, and would want their supper.
Quickly Katie set the table and helped get things ready for a meal of sweet rice and fried sausage, apples and onions. It was Katie’s favorite meal. She sprinkled brown sugar on top of the rice, which made the dish even sweeter. After supper was over and the dishes were done, her dad came over and picked up his two small girls. "Mom tells me you two helped her very well today. How about some ice cream for a treat?"
Katie loved homemade ice cream. It was smooth and creamy and soft, not hard like the kind her mother sometimes bought at the store. Butterscotch was her favorite kind. Katie loved to watch her dad and Jacob turn the crank of the ice cream freezer. They put the ice cream mix, which looked and tasted like sweet, thickened milk, inside a metal cylinder, then placed the cylinder in the freezer’s bucket and hooked up the crank. They poured ice down around the cylinder, and slowly, as they cranked, the mix thickened.
Everyone got a bowlful, even the twins. It was fun to watch their faces as the coldness of the ice cream surprised them. They started to cry, but when they noticed everyone laughing at them, they laughed too, and shouted for more.
Katie was tired after her busy day of work. Carefully, she carried an oil lamp up to her room so she could see to put on her nightgown. She knelt down beside her bed, said her prayers, and then fell exhausted but happy into bed.
Sources: My own experiences of growing up in an Amish community. Also, I used the book Ellie by Mary Christner Borntrager
Note: This story may be considered modern or it may be historical. (It is fiction.) The Amish strive to retain the same practices throughout the changing times. Some aspects of Amish life vary from community to community, such as dress specifications and methods of farming. The details in the story are specific to the Amish community in northern Indiana. For more information, contact Menno-Hof, an Amish/Mennonite historical/informational museum, 219-768-4117.
Comprehension Questions:
- What type of family was Katie from?
- List at least 3 things Katie helped with?
- Would you enjoy a life like Katie’s? Why or why not?
- What do you think you would say to a girl like Katie if you met her today?
A HARD DAY OF WORK—A day in the life of an Amish girl
By Joyce Bontrager
Answers to Comprehension Questions:
- Amish.
- Milking cows, helping get meals ready, taking care of the twins, weeding the garden, etc.
- Answers will vary.
- Answers will vary.
Outline:
- Morning—wake up and get dressed
- Her family—Amish—Caroline, Jacob, twins
- plain, simple
- no cars or electricity
- needed everyone’s help
- Barn chores
- Breakfast
- Baking bread and pies
- Garden work
- Field work—father and brother
- Her family—Amish—Caroline, Jacob, twins
- Afternoon
- Lunch
- Putting twins to sleep
- Playing outside with Caroline
- Evening
- Supper
- Ice cream
- Bedtime
Suggested props: Amish doll, rolling pin, loaf of homemade bread with Amish peanut butter (mix Karo syrup, marshmallow crème, and peanut butter into a light-colored, soft consistency).