Before I get into today's topic, I wanted to voice my opinion about the Amish movie Beth referred to on Monday. Personally I felt it took advantage of a terrible tragedy that happened to a peaceful people and made money off of it. Of course I don't know the true motives of the producers of the movie, but I believe it was way too soon to use Nickel Mines as a launching point for a fictional story. But the big reason I didn't watch it was because it was based on a real event that was very, very sad. I'm very much a happily ever after person and prefer my entertainment that way too. It's been great reading your responses to Beth's posts--we have a terrific dialogue going on about a controversial topic and we're learning from each other. The teacher in me loves that.

Speaking of teaching--I had a chance to visit an Amish schoolhouse this week. What a great experience. Both A Hand to Hold (Book 3 in the Hearts of Middlefield series) and The Secrets Beneath (Book 2 in Mysteries of Middlefield) feature schools, a school teacher, and students, so I wanted to get a first-hand look at an Amish school. It was really interesting, and there are more similarities between Amish and Yankee schools than you might think. The school really does harken back to the day of the one room schoolhouses, with multiple grades in one room. The teachers were excellent, and the students well behaved. Recess included a fun game of softball for the older kids while the younger ones played a game called dogs and rabbits, which is basically tag. I had a great time, and appreciated their generosity in letting me join them for part of the day.

Just a reminder about the book club starting tomorrow: come join us at Amish Living for a discussion of An Honest Love. Here's the link to join: http://www.amishliving.com/group/bookclub I'm so excited, and I would love to "meet" you all on the discussion board!

'Til next time,
Kathleen