The Hochstetler Massacre

This is a post I've been wanting to write ever since I told the story of my ancestor Rosanna.

Jacob Hochstetler emigrated from Switzerland in 1736, making his home in the Northkill Amish settlement in what is now Bern Township, Pennsylvania. During the French and Indian War, Delaware Indians attacked his home. There were 6 people at home the night of September 19, 1757; Jacob and his wife, sons Jacob Jr, Joseph, and Christian, and a daughter. The son Jacob was awakened by an unusual noise from the dog. He opened the door to see what was wrong, and received a gunshot wound to his leg. Realizing they were being attacked by Indians, he managed to close and lock the door before Indians could get in. Immediately the whole family awoke and could see 8 or 10 Indians standing outside near the bake oven. There was no moon that night and no light in the house, so the family could not be seen. Plenty of guns and ammunition were in the house, and Joseph, Christian, and their father were good marksmen. The sons pleaded with their father, but Jacob stood firm in his belief in non resistance and told them it was not right to take the life of another, even to save their own. After consulting among themselves, the Indians set the house on fire. The family took refuge in the cellar as the Indians stood guard outside. When the fire burst through the floor, they sprinkled cider on the burning spots and beat back the fire as best they could. It was nearing daybreak, and they were hoping to hold out until the Indians departed. Finally they saw them leaving one by one. As the fire continued to burn and it became impossible to stay in the cellar, the family crept out a small basement window. A young warrior had stayed behind gathering peaches and saw the family escape. The mother was a fleshy woman and had trouble getting out the window, also the wounded son Jacob had to be assisted, and by the time everyone was out they were surrounded by Indians. Joseph, being a swift runner, managed to escape even though two Indians followed him. When he saw they had given up the chase, he returned and hid behind a log. The son Jacob and his sister were tomahawked, and their mother was stabbed to the heart and scalped. Father Jacob and Christian were taken captive. An Indian caught sight of Joseph in his hiding place, and he was captured as well. Before leaving, Jacob advised his sons to fill their pockets with ripe peaches. Upon arrival in an Indian village, prisoners were made to run the gauntlet. Some captives died before reaching the end. Jacob and his sons presented the chief with their peaches, which pleased him so well they were saved from running the gauntlet. The Indians plucked out Jacob's beard and all of the hair on his head except for a tuft about four inches in diameter. He and his sons were separated and made to conform to Indian customs. Jacob never gave up on freeing himself, and after three years managed to escape. At the end of the war in 1758, a peace treaty was made with the condition that prisoners were to be returned, but very few ever were. Finally in 1762 Christian was released, and after much trying, Joseph was released a year later.

This historical marker is near the present day town of Shartlesville. More information can be found in this article from wikipedia.

Joseph Hochstetler is my great-great-great-great-great-great grandfather. Both Rosanna and Joseph are ancestors through my mom. I wish I knew more stories of my ancestry, but I'm lucky to know this much! Maybe some day I'll research and find out more about them.

my favorite books

Sometimes I get asked for book recommendations and recently someone left a comment suggesting I make a list. I thought about just listing my top five favorite nonfiction books, but couldn't narrow it down to so few. I did make a list of my top five all-time favorites. If you're interested in seeing what books I've read, I have a pinterest board named "READ!" You can find me on pinterest by searching "wjsmith" or "wendyjanesmith". I should probably make a goodreads account instead, but started pinning all the books I read to pinterest and that's what I've gotten used to.

WARNING: Most of the books I read are not squeaky-clean and contain profanity, immorality, or murder. My favorite genre is nonfiction, and true historical accounts often contain these vices. In no way do I want to promote evil, but many times good outweighs the evil and I choose to focus on that. Also, I am not a believer in living in purposeful ignorance to the world we live in and historical events. Most of the books listed here are for mature adults.

DISCLAIMER: At least half of these books are set in the WWII era. I guess those are the kinds of books that make the deepest impression on me!


Top ten nonfiction (not ranked):

1. We Die Alone (David Howarth)
2. The Long Walk (Slavomir Rawicz)
3. Unbroken (Laura Hillenbrand)
4. The Sun Does Shine (Anthony Ray Hinton)
5. Night (Elie Wiesel)
6. Shadow Divers (Robert Kurson)
7. A Higher Call (Adam Makos)
8. In the Heart of the Sea (Nathaniel Philbrick)
9. Roots (Alex Haley)
10. The Boys in the Boat (Daniel James Brown)

Most favorite classics:

1. Les Misérables (Victor Hugo)
2. A Tale of Two Cities (Charles Dickens)

Top five fiction (not ranked):

1. The Book Thief (Markus Zusak)
2. The Nightingale (Kristin Hannah)
3. The Boy in the Striped Pajamas (John Boyne)
4. All the Light We Cannot See (Anthony Doerr)
5. The Hobbit (J.R.R. Tolkien)

My top five all-time favorites are a mix of fiction and nonfiction. Some of the books that are on these lists are favorites because I love the way they're written and the language the author uses. Best first line ever? (my opinion) "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times . . ." comes from A Tale of Two Cities. The Book Thief is narrated by Death and has some of the most beautiful writing I've ever read, but again that's my opinion. You might not agree.


Top five all time favorites, ranked:

1. Unbroken
2. Night
3. A Higher Call
4. A Tale of Two Cities
5. The Book Thief

Evening contemplation

Instead of going on a walk this humid evening, I'm choosing to relax by sitting on the deck and writing. This was my 6th consecutive day at work and I have 3 more to go before I have some extra time off. If I find a way to relax a little every day, it helps to keep work and life from becoming too overwhelming. Walking helps too, but tonight I want to enjoy the outdoors and feel and hear the thunderstorm rolling in. Besides, I'm a little traumatized from seeing a HUGE (for here) black snake on my walk last night. As I was walking up the hill, I saw what I thought was a plastic pipe or something on the side of the road, UNTIL I got close enough to see it had a head!! Of course, I didn't stop to inspect it but it looked at least 3 feet long and didn't move as I walked by. I told Shelby since it was close to their house and I am husband-less at the moment. When Shelby and Kait were coming home later they saw it still lying there. Upon inspection, he found it was already dead, but that doesn't make it any less terrifying for me! That's one disadvantage to living in the woods - we do have snakes and I see at least one every year. Hopefully that's my one snake for this year!! I know most of the snakes around here aren't poisonous, but a snake is a snake and I do not appreciate them!

Cliff, Dad and Mom, and Charles's family went to Ohio to spray foam Chad and Keela's new house. I didn't ask to take off because I had already requested and been approved for time off over Memorial Day weekend. The job will probably take all next week. Although I miss Cliff and would love to be in Ohio with the family, I'm enjoying my alone time after I get off work by napping, walking, and reading. 😊 There's also plenty of things on my outside to-do list to keep me busy.

I've relocated to the porch since a few rain drops started splattering down. The air smells like rain, the peepers and birds are chirping, and the thunder is coming closer. May is my favorite month and I wish I could take the entire month off. I've been appreciating the mornings on my way to work when the sun is shining and there's a "bright new day" feeling. The evenings are nice and long enough to be able to walk after supper if I want to. We've had plenty of gray, rainy days too, but that makes me appreciate the sun even more! Plus, could it possibly be any greener than it is right now? I haven't watered my flowers once since I planted them two weeks ago.

Some blog topic ideas are in the back of my mind and I thought I was going to write about one of them, but this turned into a mix of everyday happenings. Maybe next time!

Melancholy Monday

This might be a slightly morbid post, but I'm just going to put it out there. Blame it on the nonstop rain we've had all day yesterday and today.

After yesterday's Sunday school lesson on "A Courageous Farewell" and reading obituaries in the Messenger this evening, I'm reflecting on my life and what people would say about me. I've noticed that the obituaries of people without children are generally shorter, implying that those people leave fewer memories behind. Since I don't have children and am part of a Mennonite culture that values family and seems to revolve around children, I sometimes feel invisible. For the record, I want to say that I have not really struggled to accept being childless. It might be different if we knew there was a chance of having our own children, but with the chromosome disorder Cliff was born with, we know it's impossible. At this time, we both have no interest in fostering or adopting, which seems to bring another set of struggles and hardship for many people. Because we don't have a family, we enjoy more freedom and privileges. Obviously God didn't design everyone to be parents. Sometimes I feel it's abnormal that I'm not anguished about not having babies, since that usually seems to be the case for most women. Feeling like I don't fit in has actually been a bigger struggle for me than not being a mom. But I have no desire to acquire a child in any way possible just so I can fit in.

Thinking about my own death is not scary. It's more scary and unthinkable to imagine it happening to my loved ones. So what would my obituary say? She loved flowers and the outdoors. She loved her family and especially enjoyed being an aunt. I hope people could say I was kind and tried to be a good teacher. I'm trying to be more positive and not so hard on myself, so I won't mention all the areas that I fail in.

I've been encouraged to think of my job as a service to others and that is my endeavor. I do enjoy my job and slowly miss teaching less and less. Being a teacher definitely made me feel more useful and needed, but also was a tremendous responsibility.

To live like this quote is my goal.

Mother is another word for love

To all moms, happy mother's day! You have an incredibly important job that no one else can fill. Thank you for training your children to be responsible, respectful Christians. Even if they don't follow your teaching, you have not failed! I think being a mom must be one of the hardest jobs there is.

I am so thankful for everything my mom taught me. When I think back to my growing up years, I know I resisted that teaching and felt angry at times that I had to work so hard. 😏 As the oldest child, it seemed like I always had chores. Hanging out and folding laundry, doing dishes (we didn't have a dishwasher until I was 14), cleaning... washing floors on my hands and knees, which I thought was the worst job ever! My mom taught me how to be particular and clean thoroughly. I remember the year after I got out of school doing a lot of baking and cooking, which I usually enjoyed. My sister Camille was a baby then and dad and mom were building a house, so I took care of her a lot. I'd rock her for her nap, then as she got older, read stories before her nap. There for awhile it was Marvin K. Mooney, Will You Please Go Now! every day. As I got older, mom would bargain with me to make supper and take care of the house while she'd sew me a dress. Learning to sew, learning to drive, and being the first in my family to be in the youth caused frustration on both sides. I think I was a really horrible person to live with during adolescence. I know now that dad and mom were much wiser than I thought they were and did the best they knew how.

My mom is a forever friend, and I'm so lucky to have her nearby.

Keep up your courage, moms! Enjoy the attention and affection you receive today!

Sunday in the pharmacy

Working weekends can be really interesting depending who you're with. This was a blog-worthy one! Having Darren and Reuben together is always hilarious (for more on these co-workers, see this post). On weekends the atmosphere is much more low-key. The bosses aren't around and rules are relaxed. Today we had "church", which Darren does sometimes. Although I've worked with him on weekends before, I never experienced church until today. Apparently there's a Baptist church in Philadelphia that streams their service live online. For several hours Darren had it going in the background. I was in and out between the anteroom and main pharmacy and not always close enough to hear everything, but what I did hear was quite something. One of the first songs the choir sang was "How Great Thou Art" which actually didn't sound too bad. Later, though, there was an extremely strong, quavering voice singing solo and it was so extraordinary that even Darren made a remark about it. The pastor who spoke had a way of talking that sounded like he was rapping. Several times I thought his rhythm would end up in song, and towards the end of the sermon it did. His whole sermon was accompanied with intermittent musical chords. One thing I did hear him say was, "Because JEsus rose UP from the GRAVE, I can earn my bachelor's degree. Because JEsus rose UP from the GRAVE, I can start my own business." He listed at least twenty things I can do "Because JEsus rose UP from the GRAVE." Several times Darren let out an "AMEN". Another thing the pastor said was we go to church for "inspiration, information, and celebration." At one point Reuben said to me "This is not like your church, is it?"

After church was over Reuben played his music, which is the soundtrack for weekends when he works. He jokingly calls it "ethnic" music, but it's actually pop. Yesterday when a favorite song came on, he broke out a few dance steps and sang along. 😄

Yesterday and today someone brought cronuts. Anyone who's never had them really needs to try them! It's like a flaky, layered donut and incredibly delicious. In this area, you can find them at Giant. Some had Chinese food delivered for lunch yesterday, but I declined.

Reuben likes to tell me, "You never had quality entertainment like this when you worked on 2 North because there was no Darren and Reuben!" Very true!

On a more serious level, I am so thankful for what we have in our church. It's much more quiet, real, and heartfelt. How blessed I am to have it's safety!

thoughts on comments / greenhouse day

Since I had two days off in a row, I feel rested and ready to write! Sometimes it feels like I have nothing to say, but I've really surprised myself by how much I enjoy blogging. On that note, I want to say something about comments. First of all, I love when people leave a comment or message me privately in response to something I wrote about. Although I'm not looking for compliments, it's nice to feel more connected and has helped me to know I'm not alone. Even though I don't always reply, I read every comment. Since I feel like I've had my say, I like to leave the comments section for readers.

Today I went greenhousing! It was a cloudy, cool day so I thought it might not be so busy. Well, I guess it doesn't matter what the weather is, May is going to be a busy time to visit a greenhouse. Last night I decided exactly what I wanted to put in my planters so I could stay focused and not end up with stuff I didn't need or a wild conglomeration of colors. I pretty much stick to my favorites but it helps to know how I'm going to arrange them and how many I'll need. There's a greenhouse in Lancaster County that I've been going to the last few years because they usually have everything I want. Although I love visiting greenhouses, I don't have a lot of time to go here and there for what I want. Once again I was pleased with the selection and ended up spending almost the exact amount I had set aside from birthday money! Several succulents were part of my purchase. Although I haven't had such great luck with them, I'm not giving up yet! If anyone has tips on how to get them to grow indoors, let me know. I've been admiring the string of pearls plant so that was one I got.

The kitchen project is still in progress. We finished everything except the shiplap wall, so I was able to move back all the stuff that had been relocated to the living room. I know I've said it before, but I love the new look!

I'm working the next six days so need to get some rest. For those who have the weekend off, enjoy it!

compliment, don't criticize

If you can't say something nice, say nothing.

When I was a child, I remember being told this by my parents. I've been thinking about how we talk about other people. It bothers me when I hear others talking negatively about someone, but then I catch myself doing it too! Really, why do we need to talk about others unless we're going to say something good about them?

This is one of my dad's favorite quotes and has always been impressive to me, also. Certainly, when our conversation is mostly about people, it shows how small our world is. If you start paying attention, you soon realize that not only do we talk about people, but also criticize, make fun of, and gossip about others. When I hear others talk badly about someone and I see the same fault in that person, it's hard not to join in the negativity. Yet I want to be the person who never says anything bad about people.

This brings up another issue - giving constructive criticism. I believe there is definitely a time for that, but many of us don't have the talent to make it "constructive". For example, if I see a co-worker not doing their job properly, I refrain from saying something because I feel like I come across in a harsh way. But then it irritates me that they're doing something incorrectly and it's easy for me to tell someone else about it. When I feel like I'm being criticized, I soon start thinking I'm a failure. I realize this is my problem, but maybe if I got just as many compliments as criticism, it would make it easier to take. The last few days I've gotten quite a bit of criticism by one of my co-workers. It makes such a difference in how my day goes (not good) and exhausts me. Probably her intention is to train me to do better with constructive criticism, but it feels like nit-picking. So now I'm talking badly about someone, right?! When our struggles involve other people, it's hardly possible to not talk about them. I don't have answers, but I do know that I want to give more compliments and say only good things when I talk about others.