Barefoot with the Amish Cook

Ever wonder why many Amish moms seem to prefer going barefoot while shucking corn or canning beans?

The Amish Cook, Lovina Eicher, shares a bit in this excerpt from her column:

The children just can’t wait until they can run outside barefooted. I caught a few of them trying to do it already. I don’t think the ground is warm enough yet, maybe once the last frost of the season is done. I remember Mom always thought we should wait until April. Some say they wait until they see their first bee. I like being barefooted myself and am looking forward to the warmer weather.

We used to run up and down our stone driveway barefooted while growing up. Our feet would always be so tender in the spring but after a few weeks our feet were tough again.  I remember always going out to milk the cows bare-footed.  One time a cow stepped on my foot really hard and bruised me badly.  After that I always made sure I had shoes or boots on when in the barn. It was more protection if you’d happen to get stepped on.

Lovina writes weekly from her home in a Michigan Amish community.  She has taken over the task from her mother, who wrote this column for 10 years.