Quote Originally Posted by peggy View Post
I would expect a farmer to know about farming. That's his business. Pretty much the only business along with related 'business' , fixing the farm equipment, animal husbandry, carpentry. think the girls know all that? Or maybe just 'girl' things like cooking and sewing, and milking.
You *do* realize that farming represents a rather complex and diverse realm of knowledge?

There seems to be some sort of assumption that farming is "lesser" somehow than, say, yoga instructing... My own farming, which is only a handful of crops, is quite challenging, managing an entire farmstead would require all sorts of skills and knowledge and experience. Especially if done in a sustainable, permaculturish fashion.

Do you think those good Amish parents are teaching their kids ... any foreign language besides english, or programming, or all the other bits of education you all take advantage of knowing and using.
Almost every Amish person I have met spoke multiple languages, generally English and at least one German dialect. I suspect they are more multi-lingual than your average "main stream" American. I was raised in a German-speaking household myself, and our Amish neighbors understood my German, their own German dialect, and English.

Sitting around a table with Amish folks, you'd figure this sort of thing out.