When my brush hog was disabled, I worried that I might not be able to mow my field, I drove up the road half a mile to a farm run by an Amish family, intending to ask the farmer if he’d be willing and able to cut the field with his horse-drawn mower. When I arrived at the farm, I was surprised to see no one there. I often drive past their place on my way to town, and invariably see several members of the large family working in the fields, garden and barnyard, but today I saw no one at first, and the buggies were gone. As I drove past, however, I spotted someone out behind the barn, so I pulled into the driveway and drove toward them. As I approached, I realized that there were three Amish children there, with no adults present. I waved, and the children ran away, disappearing behind the barn!
I don’t think that I’m a particularly scary-looking guy, and I’m not accustomed to children fleeing from me, but I suppose that the kids were feeling vulnerable, because their parents weren’t there. Plus they’re not used to automobiles. I backed out and shrugged it off, but later, while driving to town, I noticed a young woman walking along a back road. She used to be my neighbor. I recognized her and she recognized me. I asked if she wanted a ride. She shook her head and she appeared relieved as I drove away.

This sort of distrust was very rare when I was a child. Unfortunately, the world has changed for the worse. Why? What changes in our culture have resulted in a declining sense of security? Some people might blame the prevalence of violence in our television shows and movies. Other people might blame the widespread presence of addictive drugs and the crimes associated with addicts desperately trying to get a fix. Surely these factors might contribute to the problem, but I think that the pervasiveness of social media is the most significant thing influencing the decline in our society’s sense of well-being. This probably wouldn’t apply to the Amish kids, but most of our young people spend a great deal of time immersed in social media, which is detrimental to their emotional health. Perhaps new rules limiting cell phone use in schools will help, but the genie is out of the bottle.

Michael Hahn Band varies in size from a duo to a six-piece band, depending upon the size and budget of the venue. They love to make music for any occasion. For bookings call 802-754-8889.

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