I’ve decided... I want to live like the Amish.
Not by donning a kapp or riding a buggy, but by living intentionally.
The Amish way of life...
It's often believed that Amish communities are ignorant to modern technology and avoid it completely, but this is no longer the case. They don't block out modern inventions, they assess them. They evaluate them based on their rock-solid philosophy.
Their main value is to strengthen their community.
When they're made aware of a modern invention, a committee will introduce it in a controlled manner to assess how it impacts the community as a whole. Their main goal is to identify whether the adoption of a specific modern invention will help or harm the community.
Those that make the cut are ones that pass the test of: strengthening the community, bringing people together, making systems more efficient, and benefitting their environment. Those that prove harmful are not introduced.
When cars were introduced into Amish communities, people were more inclined to travel elsewhere for entertainment. This resulted in a fracturing of the group, as people spent less time together. The inclusion of personal phones was quickly identified as harmful, as people were more likely to stay indoors and isolate themselves from the wider community. To combat this, communal phones were introduced, which led to families bump into each other and chat. Disposable diapers are a part of Amish life these days, as they assessed them to be more helpful for the community than harmful.
By developing a strong philosophy around a set of core values, the Amish people are able to make more informed decisions rather than getting swept up in what wider society believes is beneficial. Nobody knows their values better than them.
The same applies to you and I.
Convenience is not held in as high a regard as longterm community benefit within Amish communities. The same cannot be said for modern society. We adopt new technology for its efficiency rather than its positive impact on the tribe at large.
