Today, I was working in my office beside Della, one of our Amish neighbors. She comes in once or twice a week, and helps price and put out baked goods and other Amish products. When she comes to work, she brings her infant, Emmy, and her 4 year old son, Rory. It is always a slurry of activity when the kids are there, as they play and “help” us put out products in the store. The customers love seeing the Amish kids. Rory really likes my husband. I mean loves him. Of course it might be because my husband keeps candy with him and anytime he stops at Amish homes he gives all the kids candy. The kids literally run out of their houses to see Jim when he pulls in the driveway. When we go to auctions and other large Amish gatherings, we can overhear the kids saying his name as they point at him when we walk by. He is literally a celebrity in the Amish community, and I am convinced it has to do with the candy he hands out so freely.
A few weeks ago, Rory had all he could handle of work in the store, and very little was holding his attention. He was standing at the door and kept saying in Dutch, “I sure wish Jim would get here!” He just kept repeating this phrase over and over. It just so happened, that Jim called my cell phone, and I put him on speaker phone and called Rory over. Rory ran right over and he and Jim were able to have a good conversation. (As good as you can have with a four year old who speaks Dutch as a first language). Rory seemed satisfied with the fact that Jim spoke with him, and even more so that it was on a phone. Amish families do not have phones in their homes, and our particular community has very specific rules about the use of phones.
Anyway, this morning, I was sitting at my desk, working on some paperwork and Rory ran up and pointed at my phone. He kept saying something over and over but I couldn’t understand what he was saying, so I asked his mother to interpret. Della laughed heartily, and said, “He is asking if Jim is still in that phone.”
We all had a good laugh, especially at the fact that it has been a few weeks since Rory had spoken with my husband. It was obviously an unforgettable experience for this young Amish boy.