Weekend Highlights on a Textured Tuesday

I'm linking up today with Kim Klassen's Texture Tuesday...

Edster and I (and the dogs) went to Berlin, Ohio this past weekend...right in the middle of the largest Amish community in the world.  It was my birthday...and it was good to escape from the city to the simplicity of this rural life.

This man, a blacksmith, had just replaced this horse's shoes and took him for a walk to check his work.  Of course, the dog had to go along...

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I came across five horses standing along the road...used most likely for transportation.  Here is a photo of three of them with Kim's waterfront27 texture.  They were all black...

except for this one.  This gorgeous Percheron (shown with Kim's 0212 texture) was stunning...

And I could not take my eyes off of him and those white lashes!

There is nothing so pristine as Amish farms...where nothing goes to waste. (Texture used is Kim's brisbane and sybil.)

I was moved as I contemplated how materialism complicates our life so much...and what we miss because of it.  I saw this buggy in the distance while it was snowing and the sun peeking through.  (Texture used is Kim's waterfront17.) One phrase came to my mind..."live simply."

Now, I must say that I am very hesitant to photograph the Amish, respecting their beliefs.  I try to be non-intrusive, never photographing a full face...often photographing from behind or from a distance.  At most...a profile.  But I was blessed by this bonus of ice skating youth on a frozen pond.  Watching them for nearly a half an hour, watching their smiles and their antics.  They were living their lives.  And one phrase came to mind..."simply live."

It was a beautiful weekend with those I love in a rural land truly and simply all its own.