P.L. Gaus's Blog: From Ohio's Amish Country, page 9

Photos From Ohio's Amish Country: Summer-3

On rainy days in Holmes County, the Amish farm implements stand idle in the fields.  Notice how simple and sturdy this one is.  Then think about the  large motorized machines you see on most modern farms.  Amish people prove every day that farming doesn't need to be big and complicated.

Photos From Ohio's Amish Country: Summer-2

There are quite a few new foals this year in Holmes County.  We drove through the countryside near Mt. Eaton yesterday, and we saw colts and phillies on nearly every farm.  This little one is taking a nap on a bed of straw.  It was a very nice day here in horse country.

Photos From Ohio's Amish Country: Summer-1

Summer weather has definitely arrived in Holmes County, Ohio, and farmers here have brought in their first crop of hay.  Fields that used to be green have now been mowed, and the hay has been raked, dried in the sun, and taken up, so that brown stubble marks the places where a new crop soon will be growing.  I know summer doesn't start officially until later this month, but for me, the first mowing of hay is always the start of it.

Photos From Ohio's Amish Country: Spring-63

Here is a long farm lane leading back to an Amish place in Holmes County.  It's an idyllic scene, with a lot of wooden fencing, both along the drive and around the house.  I notice the fence because I know that each and every post hole was dug by hand, and the stretches of white fence were painted by hand, too.  That long and simple fence represents a lot of hard work.  If you're Amish, that's just what you do.

Photos From Ohio's Amish Country: Spring-62

Some Amish farmhouses are quite large.  This one is practically a mansion.  I can see where several additions were made, as the family grew in size.  That's the thing with Amish families.  Grandparents stay at home with their children and grandchildren.

Photos From Ohio's Amish Country: Spring-61

An Amish buggy passes by an English farm where the hay is "baled" in modern, plastic-covered rolls.  It's the old ways juxtaposed on the new.  In Holmes county, we live with this type of contrast all around us.  Regular advances are made each year in farming practices, but Amish people remain faithful (that's the word they would use) to the past.

Photos From Ohio's Amish Country: Spring-60

Here is a horse clipping along on "buggy time."  This photograph was taken nearly a dozen miles from any town, and I wonder.  How differently would I organize my life if a drive into town for groceries could take the entire afternoon?

Photos From Ohio's Amish Country: Spring-59

A beautiful Amish farm on a glorious spring day in Holmes County.  I never grow tired of the countryside.

Photos From Ohio's Amish Country: Spring-58

Here is an Amish father getting ready to lift his daughter into their buggy.  As they walked out of the store, they seemed to be ordinary people, shopping in town for supplies like any ordinary people would do.  But as I look at this picture, I realize that this girl's life will not be anything like that of "ordinary" city folk.  The more I study this image, the more I see.

Photos From Ohio's Amish Country: Spring-57

In pleasant spring weather, the Amish farmers in Holmes County break out their open buggies and enjoy a ride with the top down as much as anyone.  We liked to drive our Miata sports car over the curves and hills of the county, and I guess it is no surprise that after a long winter, Amish people would enjoy a ride in the open air too.