• November 1991 — As we went to church this morning, is it just a habit of going? Most people go to church on Sunday and some have the habit of going to church at other times. If anyone tells you religion is just a habit, we’d answer them that’s better to have that habit than not have it at all.

As a family, you automatically get into the same habit. Especially in our adult life, habits are what cause us to live a “structured” life. We get up at the same time each morning. Some are going out to milk the cows, some are getting breakfast and some getting their dinner buckets packed. The list could go on in what takes place in the early morning hours. It seems it’s a hustle and bustle or should we say it’s a habit. It seems we eat much the same food for breakfast, dinner and supper.

We get dressed, wash and comb our hair and off to work we go. All without specific preplanning. The average person gets to work, they do their job but a carpenter trade is somewhat different. They go from place to place. We then tend to spend money after we get our paychecks on things we could do without, when actually it’s just a plain habit of doing so. It’s just the kind of habit that’s hard to change.

• January 1992 — What’s next on the list to be done in the winter months? Butchering day! Ugh! It’s always such a messy and tiresome day. Yet, it’s good to have fresh pork even if we buy meat from the stores during the year.

Our family comes home early in the morning to help butcher our couple hogs.

The hogs are shot, of course and then scalded in a butchering tank of hot water, taken out on a butcher table and what you might call shaven clean. Then the hogs are hung on a scaffold and cut wide open and the stomach, etc., removed.

If the intestines are accidently cut into, it will make a messy job. The women like to see clean intestines come in as they usually take care of cleaning the stomach, intestines, etc. The intestines are scraped clean, which will be stuffed with sausage, which some parts of the meat was ground through the grinder.

The hams, bacon, pork chops, or tenderloin, ribs are all cut out and later the hams are sugar-cured. Some can it by pressure cooker and fry down the meat. If fried down the next day, it usually goes in a crock and lard poured over it. After rendering lard, we’ll have those cracklings which some are so fond of.

At noon, there’s usually a good meal to feast on. After all the mess, the iron kettles and butchering items are washed. Greasy, but good eating afterwards. It’s just one of those enjoyable days together.

• March 1992 — All around us, tints of green begin coloring the drab landscape. Tiny green leaves deck the stark brown branches. In the ground, seeds and roots enliven with growth. Beautiful buds and blooms and flowers will come forth.

Bright reds and yellows, sharp blues, deep and pale pinks, deep and pale purples, and pure whites. Very delicately are they formed and very pleasing are they to behold.

House cleaning time again. How good to push up the windows and let the fresh air come in. An inner force impels us to be energetic.

Tomorrow, March 11, it’ll be 34 years since Ben and I took up housekeeping. So, it was quite a change to adjust after working at the nearby produce factory for quite some years. Butchering chickens, etc. were among my duties. The produce plant is a thing of the past now.

Editor’s note: This week’s recipe doesn’t include the brown sugar and cinnamon measurements, nor the oven preheat temperature.

Mother’s Sweet Rolls (Cinnamon Rolls)

Ingredients

1 ½ cups milk

2 teaspoons salt

½ cup sugar

½ cup butter, melted

2 packages yeast

½ cup warm water

3 eggs, beaten

6 cups flour

Brown sugar

Cinnamon

Directions

In a small bowl, add yeast to warm water and let stand for 5 minutes.

In a sauce pan, scald milk then add salt, sugar and butter.

Add the yeast water to the scalded milk.

Add eggs and 3 cups flour and mix.

Add rest of flour.

Let the dough raise, doubling in size.

Roll out and spread melted butter.

Sprinkle brown sugar on top, then the cinnamon.

Roll up and cut about ¾ to 1 inch in width.

Put in a greased cake pan and let rise.

Bake in a hot oven about 5 to 7 minutes.

Lovina’s Amish Kitchen is written by Lovina Eicher, Old Order Amish writer, cook, wife and mother of eight who lives in southeastern Michigan.