This afternoon Bookman makes his first run of books to the Amish children. I’m hoping and planning to know these neighbors better and learn more about their fascinating way of life.

I only recently learned of the Rumspringa, an old Amish custom that says a lot about them, and the trust they have in their faith.

I was talking to one of the Amish boys – a neighbor, let’s call him “J” –  yesterday and I asked him about Rumspringa – the Amish phrase for “running around.”

When Amish youth turn 16, they are permitted – encouraged – to go out beyond the community to explore life in the secular world. This happens with their peers on weekends, when they are given some leeway by their parents.

The Amish idea is that their children should have time to explore the outside world and count the cost of joining the Amish community before joining the church and committing to a hard and simpler life.

The Amish willingly take the gamble that the Rumspringa process will innoculate their children against the very strong pull of the forbidden by providing them a dose of some worldly experience.

The Amish community does not believe in coercion or pressure. They believe there is no greater call or bond to faith and their way of life than a bond freely chosen.

The word Rumspringa literally translates to “running around” in Pennsylvania German. During this time, children are given the opportunity to experiment with non-traditional Amish life. For instance, they may visit a neighboring town, wear everyday clothing, use modern technology such as cars and cell phones, and even drink or party with non-Amish people.

This is a radical and sometimes shocking transition for these young people.

It’s a complete change from their normal lives, restrictions, and traditions. The Amish life puts strict limitations on the use of technology and on where Amish people can and can’t go.

The focal point of Amish life is worshipping God, being kind, sustaining family, and serving their community.

They have found over time that while some young people leave this way of life, most chose the Amish life rather than the lives they see beyond.

I was thinking about how fearful I would have been of urging my daughter to step outside of our lives when she was 16 and decide if she was going to continue with our way of life.

Such a thing seems unimaginable to me, yet I found myself admiring the practice when I heard about it, and I loved the freedom my young friend was being offered to break the stringent rules of a lifetime and decide his own path.

He was sincerely open to studying the world and making a reasoned decision about his life. Once he made that decision, he said, there would be no going back, at least for him.

“I’m looking forward to it,” he said. “I think I will learn a lot and have a lot to think about.

” No one was pressuring him either way, he said, it was his choice.

He told me that children are not Baptized yet, and are not under any church authority.

I asked my new friend – he is almost 15 – if he is looking forward to Rumspringa.

He said he was very much interested in seeing how others his age live. He also said he loves his family very much and found the complexity and distractions of the “other world” frightening.

Here in the country, I wondered where he might go. He said he has no idea, he is free to travel anywhere he can get to.

I told him I’d love to know how it goes, and he promised to tell me.