A Day in the Life of an Amish Teen

Today, YA Reviews and News is honored to feature a guest post by the acclaimed author of Temptation and the soon to be released sequel, Belonging, Karen Anne Hopkins.

A day in the life of an Amish teen:  Hard work and responsibility are parts of every Amish teen’s life.  Whether girl or boy, they’re expected to contribute to the household’s income and livelihood.  After graduating in the eighth grade, Amish teens are finished with schooling and thrust into the workforce, either leaving the home for a forty hour work week or putting that much time into in a family business.    Jobs include carpentry, metal work, farming, and welding for the boys and butchery, bakery, woodworking, retail, teaching, child care, and housecleaning for the girls.  Usually, 90% of a teen’s income is given to the family as an intricate part of the family’s financial survival.  Part of the ten percent that the teens retain is saved towards the teen’s future married life, while the rest is for their own enjoyment.
Even though Amish teens work hard, they also play hard.  Oftentimes, they will take short trips with their church groups, visit relatives and friends, and participate in activities such as hunting, horseback riding and skiing.  A usual day for an Amish teen begins at five o’clock in the morning, followed by prayer, breakfast and morning chores.  After working an eight hour work day, the youth will arrive home to afternoon chores before dinner with the family.  The evenings are playtime for the young people.  They can be found at the church’s youth group gatherings, such as singings and ball games or they may be seen riding their horses or bikes on the roadways.   Five things I’ve learned from the Amish: Just a few random facts.

             1.) They are not taught geography or science in school.

2.) Their families deal with many of the same problems as everyone else, such
as marital, financial and child rearing. 

3.) If an Amish couple does divorce, which is highly unlikely, they are not
allowed to remarry. 

4.) Amish families often move around, relocating to another region or state
due to problems within their community. 

 5.) The Amish pay federal and state tax, but not social security tax.

Love stories that inspired Temptation:Romeo and Juliet, and Twilight are two stories that I can name that gave inspiration to Rose and Noah’s story.  There are similarities in all three romances from the forbidden nature of the affairs to the struggle for the couples to be together.   In TEMPTATION, however, the external forces are only part of the difficulties facing the young lovers.  The aspect of whether Rose and Noah are willing to give up their own world is the driving conflict of the story.

Karen Ann Hopkins is the author of Temptation and Belonging, published by Harlequin Teen.
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