Categories
Humorous and Interesting

Gramma’s Ham

We Have Always Done It This Way

I heard an excellent story from a Mennonite friend who grew up Amish that explains many of the things they do because of their culture – being so grounded in tradition.

A young girl was in the kitchen with her mom one Sunday after church while dinner was being prepared.  The mom took the ham out of the fridge, cut off a few inches from one end, placed it in the roasting pan, and put it in the hot oven to cook.

The young girl asked “Mom – why did you cut the end of the ham off”, and the mom replied “I’m not sure, dear – that’s what Gramma always did and I learned from her”.  Gramma was over that quiet Sunday afternoon so they went into the living room and inquired about the practice.

Gramma’s reply was simple – “because my pan was short”.  The Mom cut the ham because that was what they always did, even though her pan could accommodate a larger ham!

Many of the things that the Amish and Mennonites do are thought to be for “religious” or biblical reasons when in fact they are merely tradition.  Simply put – they do what they do because “that’s what we’ve always done”.  Simple – traditions – and very strong ones at that!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *