Mighty Mennonite-y

There's this beautiful covered bridge in West Montrose, Ontario that my hubby and I stumbled upon during our courtship sometime in the mid-90s. It was the fall, and we had just been shopping in the local tourist village of St. Jacobs (which is mainly a Mennonite community), and as we were wandering the area, we saw signs that led us to the breathtaking bridge, also appropriately known as the "Kissing Bridge".

Well the wind was icy-cold, and the ground was thick with fallen leaves at this little park on the other side of the bridge...and, I've always been good at improvising...so I ended up making a huge leaf pile and burrowing inside, and then my hubby burrowed in too and we were warm and snug and happy and it was SO romantic and picture-perfect until something was crawling up my pant leg and I jumped up screaming "GET IT OFF ME! GET IT OFF ME!" and that was the end of that passionate encounter.

Well this weekend we went back to the "Kissing Bridge" and we took the kids. As we walked the excited kids across, we heard the 'clip-clop, clip-clop' of hooves on wood. We stood aside as a Mennonite farmer and his buggy came though. The magnificent horses slowed at they passed us, and the farmer tipped his hat to us. My kids stared in wonder, while, two children wearing black old-order hats and clothing, stared out the buggy window back at us.

It was a moment when the world stood still. When we were transported back in time for a minute, given the gift of seeing life during a simpler time. Then we were redeposited safely back to where we belonged.

At the farmer's market I bought some dried, mixed beans and some smoked pork, and the lady gave me her recipe for Traditional Bean Soup! I was so thrilled to take home a taste of Mennonite Country, and couldn't WAIT to make this stuff. Well let me tell you...I spent all the damn day making this soup! I used to wonder what these people did without cars and electricity all day, but now I know!

THEY ARE MAKING SOUP!

Chopping endless piles of carrots, celery, onions, peppers, garlic, meat and tomatoes into tiny little pieces and letting various combinations of these things simmer for 4 friggin hours EACH (not to mention the stuff that needs to cool overnight that you have to cook the day BEFORE so you can skim off the fat and the beans that need to soak for 2 days!) I still stink like Traditional Bean Soup and that recipe made enough to feed an army and I had to do SOMETHING with this stuff so I filled up large containers of this steaming hot soup and delivered some to my parents, and some to my grandmother, and some to my mother-in-law, stopping for chats and company along the way.

It was only when I got home that I realized the point of the soup.

And it was good.