Today’s post is by Kelly Irvin,  a graduate of the University of Kansas School of Journalism.  She has worked as a professional writer for thirty years. Her latest works are novels set in an Amish community.  The Beekeeper’s Son received a starred review from Publisher’s Weekly.  She has also written two inspirational suspense novels.

A trip to South Texas

When people think about the Amish, they usually draw on images they’ve seen in the media of pristine white houses with big barns and beautiful flower gardens amid green, lush fields. It’s an idyllic existence if photos are really worth a thousand words. That’s why I was so shocked and surprised when I decided to visit Bee County, Texas, the home of Texas’ only Amish District, and found something completely the opposite.

I planned to write a series based on this tiny community so it seemed firsthand research was in order. Bee County is about a two-hour drive south of San Antonio, where I live. The Amish community isn’t easy to find unless you know what you’re looking for. You pass a sign that says fresh eggs for sale, an old, rural cemetery, and turn onto Tynan Road at a sign that announces honey for sale. You know you’ve arrived when you see the Combination Store on the right with a broken down, old buggy in front and a junkyard of old buggy parts adjacent to the faded, rusty building.

All the buildings in this community of about 12 families have a similar appearance. I pulled in, turned off the ignition, and sat there contemplating. Was there a statement being made in the lack of fresh paint? Was it poverty? It certainly couldn’t be laziness, given the Amish’s propensity for hard work. I spent some time in the store that day and chatted with the owner, Mr. Borntrager Senior, about the noisy cicadas and the olive trees I’d read they were trying to grow. I bought some honey and a book about caring for beehives. Mr. Borntrager Junior told me they had 300 apiaries on the adjoining properties. That’s a lot of honey and a lot of work. They grow vegetables and sell them to the state’s largest grocery chain. They also make leather goods and train horses. Mr. Borntrager Senior builds custom made buggies and likes to bird watch.

What they don’t do is worry too much about outward trappings. They don’t have much in the way of material goods, but they feed their families and put clothes on their backs. I’ve driven through the scattering of buildings on various occasions and seen the women hard at work hand picking the vegetables in the gardens. I visited their annual fund-raising auction in November and talked with some of the neighbors who were a first name basis with the Borntrager clan. They had only good things to say about these quiet, unassuming families.

I’ve spent the last three years learning about these Amish folks and writing three novels using their little community as a springboard. The books are surely fiction and in no way reflect the true inner workings of this tight knit group of mostly related families. What I’ve learned is that we too often get caught up in the world’s definition of beauty. South Texas is a drought-stricken barren place where farming is even harder than it is up north, where it’s by no means a piece of cake. The Amish of Bee County have taken a rough patch of Texas land and made it their own.

I don’t know for certain, but my writer’s imagination suggests there are times when choosing to stay or go is an enormous challenge. In the second book in the series, The Bishop’s Son, my hero and heroine struggle with that question. Not because they want an easier life, but because they want to worship in a different way. In order to do that, they have to leave their families and friends for good. Never talk to them again. From our non-Amish perspective, leaving behind all that hard work might sound good, but for my characters the struggle is heartbreaking. In the end, they have to decide between faith and family. I’ve learned not to judge a book by its cover. The families of Bee County would be hard to leave behind for any reason.

JIM:  Here’s a bit more on The Bishop’s Son.

Leila Lantz is in danger of losing her heart to a Plain man until she discovers he’s not so Plain after all.

Leila has been drawn to Jesse Glick, the bishop’s son, since the first day she met him at his father’s store, and she knows he feels the same way about her. But she can’t understand why he seems to make overtures one day, then withdraw the next.

Jesse has a secret. He has been attending an Englisch church youth group, and he’s starting to believe he’s being called to be a minister, something Amish men cannot be unless they draw the lot. He’s considering leaving his Amish community to follow his calling. The only reason he has stayed is Leila. Will, Jesse’s cousin, has his own feelings for Leila, but he has stood back in deference to his cousin for many months. Until he can’t stand the thought of Leila being hurt.

Leila can choose Will and know that she will never have to leave her home or family. Or she can choose Jesse and the love her heart desires, knowing she’ll have to say goodbye to her entire community. The day comes when Jesse, Will, and Leila all have to make their choices, choices that will deeply affect their small, close-knit community of Plain families.

If you have a moment, leave Kelly a comment.