Plain Wisdom
Authors: Cindy Woodsmall
Plain Wisdom
“A treasure chest, for sure … The wisdom in these stories is time-tested and true—plain and simple.”
—K
AREN
K
INGSBURY
,
New York Times
best-selling author of
Unlocked
and
Shades of Blue
“A fascinating comparison between two starkly different ways of life.”
—D
ONALD
B. K
RAYBILL
, author of
The Riddle of Amish Culture
“A beautiful weaving of the lives of two very different women drawn together through their bond of faith and love of family. Their intertwining stories offer both timeless wisdom and sincere encouragement to inspire all women to learn from one another’s experiences. You will enjoy their honesty, their humor, and their life lessons as well as some of their delicious recipes! Cindy and Miriam bring us back to the place where our hearts long to go—a place of simplicity and truth.”
—K
AROL
L
ADD
, author of
The Power of a Positive Woman
“
Plain Wisdom
provides a beautiful glimpse into the lives of my longtime friend Cindy Woodsmall and her Amish friend Miriam Flaud. Though separated by the modern world and Old Order Amish customs, they have a living faith that bonds them and invites us to embrace our experiences with greater hope, delight, and laughter.”
—D
R
. A
LAN
W
EATHERLY
, senior pastor of Asbury United Methodist Church, Madison, Alabama
“Cindy Woodsmall and Miriam Flaud have the unique ability to marry two very different lifestyles in a masterful way by focusing on their similarities in faith and in daily life. Their chapters are easily digested in short pages designed for busy women—be they Amish or English. I loved savoring the wisdom in this book as well as the mouth-watering recipes. Written with the true insight of women who have been there,
Plain Wisdom
is a serious guide to life that doesn’t take itself too seriously … and offers something for every woman.”
—E
LLIE
K
AY
, author of
The 60-Minute Money Workout
O
THER
B
OOKS BY
C
INDY
W
OODSMALL
A
DA’S
H
OUSE SERIES
The Hope of Refuge
The Bridge of Peace
(
The Harvest of Grace
, coming in fall 2011)
The Sound of Sleigh Bells
S
ISTERS OF THE
Q
UILT SERIES
When the Heart Cries
When the Morning Comes
When the Soul Mends
P
LAIN
W
ISDOM
P
UBLISHED BY
W
ATER
B
ROOK
P
RESS
12265 Oracle Boulevard, Suite 200
Colorado Springs, Colorado 80921
All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the King James Version. Scripture quotations marked (
NASB
) are taken from the New American Standard Bible®. © Copyright The Lockman Foundation 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977. Used by permission. (
www.Lockman.org
). Scripture quotations marked (
NIV
) are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by Biblica Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.
www.zondervan.com
.
Copyright © 2011 by Cindy Woodsmall
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published in the United States by WaterBrook Multnomah, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House Inc., New York.
W
ATER
B
ROOK
and its deer colophon are registered trademarks of Random House Inc.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Woodsmall, Cindy.
Plain wisdom: an invitation into an Amish home and the hearts of two women / Cindy Woodsmall and Miriam Flaud. — 1st ed.
p. cm.
eISBN: 978-0-307-45935-0
1. Christian women—Religious life. 2. Amish women—Religious life. I. Flaud, Miriam.
II. Title.
BV4527.W6235 2011
277.3′083082—dc22
2010044303
v3.1
F
ROM
M
IRIAM:
To my awesome family: my husband, Daniel, and my children, David, Jacob, Mervin, Michael, Amanda, and Mark. To my wonderful daughters-in-law: Martha, Naomi, and Miriam. To my precious grandchildren: Jolaine, Michael, Timothy, Mervin, and J. R
.
My love for all of you knows no bounds
.
To my sisters, whom I love, and to my friends—both Amish and English alike—I cherish each of you
.
F
ROM
C
INDY:
To Dad, Kathy, Leston, and Mark. If we’d known then what we know now, we’d have cherished each other more
.
Our yesterdays are gone. Our tomorrows may never be
.
But your indelible fingerprints are all over my heart, at least until I reach eternity
.
To my agent, Steve Laube
.
I came to you with a heart’s desire … and you heard me
.
You counseled, cautioned, and encouraged—every word wise and helpful
.
You’ve poured years of support into helping Miriam and me bring
Plain Wisdom
to fruition
.
From the book’s title, writing style, pacing, and voice to the idea for the cover, your creative and technical guidance is in every part of this work
.
ONTENTS
NTRODUCTION
I
n 2001 Miriam and I lived seven hundred miles apart geographically—but a century apart by customs. Miriam is an Old Order Amish woman trying to keep the Old Ways and avoid modernization. I am a typical American woman trying to keep up with the constant changes in technology while meeting the expectations of society, church, parents, and peers. We didn’t know each other, but we had a mutual friend, and because of her, Miriam and I talked on the phone occasionally and shared letters regularly.
When Miriam invited me to visit her in 2002, I had no way of knowing how much we’d have in common. As our friendship grew, we began to realize that we’ve had many of the same life experiences, and we have approached them in faith and with some trepidation. Between us, we’ve given birth to nine babies—five we’ve ushered into adulthood; the others are now older teens or preteens. And both of us are still standing. Our cultural differences are vast; the more time I spend with Miriam, the more I realize just how different. Yet our methods for emotionally and spiritually dealing with life and work are remarkably similar.
In the visits since 2002, as we sat together, hedged in by her lilac bushes and sipping on coffee, a dream began to grow inside us. We wanted to share with other women our victories and defeats, what had and hadn’t worked for us, and to encourage them by being real and vulnerable. Our friendship has shown us that whatever culture we live in, successes are possible … and failures are inevitable, but they’re never final when placed in His hands.
As women we easily believe in the worth of a newborn, who can give nothing and takes much. We hold fast to hope for our children’s future, even for those teens who fight us every step of the way. We can see our
friends’ lives through the eyes of faith. Yet when we think of ourselves, we often wallow in unforgiveness, self-loathing, and feelings of inadequacy.
Our desire is to help you embrace the beauty of the life God has given you. We wrote
Plain Wisdom
to encourage you to accept yourself, forgive yourself, challenge yourself, laugh at yourself, and, most important, see yourself through God’s eyes of love. For when you do, you will find the freedom to truly enjoy your life.
Plain Wisdom
is a collection of events in our lives—from early childhood to just a few months ago—and lessons we’ve learned, insights we’ve discovered, words of wisdom, Amish recipes, pictures of the Amish culture, and even a touch of Amish and “Englischer,” or English (non-Amish), humor. In some cases we draw the lessons from our stories; at other times we’ll let the events speak for themselves, allowing the Holy Spirit to whisper to readers’ hearts through the details.
