Small Efficiency with Joel Salatin | April 2022

Our Story WHO WE ARE...

From 2007 to 2012 we, the Millers, adopted our first three children, a preschooler on the autism spectrum and two babies with Down syndrome. We published our first issue of Plain Values in 2012 to highlight Biblical ministries, share the beauty of adoption, and to cultivate anchored community. In 2018 we welcomed our fourth child in a surprise adoption, this time a baby with Mosaic Down syndrome.

WHAT WE BELIEVE...

Our values are plain values, steeped in the rich traditions of yesterday. We enjoy the simple things in life. Gathering eggs from the coop, getting our hands in the dirt to grow food, and cooking meals from scratch. Sometimes we sit around a fire and share life. We strive to walk humbly to strengthen authentic relationships with our families and neighbors. And, yes, we have taken a fresh pie to a front porch and surprised a friend… we didn’t even text them before! We just stopped by, walked up the steps, and knocked on the door! Just the way our grandparents used to do on a Sunday evening. They called it living in community.

We seek to serve our neighbors. Plain Values began with a prayer, hoping to play a small role in connecting a child with Down syndrome to his or her forever family. We have checked that box nearly a dozen times in the last ten years, and we will not stop until the orphanages are empty! We will rest in Heaven!

HOW YOU CAN HELP...

Subscribe today. Join us as we pursue a more authentic life. By subscribing to Plain Values, a portion of each subscription goes directly to Room to Bloom, our non-profit that supports children with special needs.

Our Team PUBLISHER

OFFICE

WRITERS

Marlin Miller

Nic Stoltzfus, editorial manager

Alyssa Hupp, contributing writer

Sabrina Schlabach, quality assurance

Stacey Gagnon, Whispers of Hope

Bethany Troyer, bookkeeping

Sherri Romig , contributing writer

Jan Schlabach, customer service

Rory Feek, Roots + Wings

Isaac Hershberger, production manager

Merissa A. Alink, Homestead + Roots

Seth Yoder, graphic artist

Joel Salatin, Confessions of a Steward

ADVERTISING Matt Yoder, Ohio sales advisor Aaron Stutzman, Indiana + Michigan sales advisor

Ferree Hardy, The Widow's Path Elam Stoltzfus, Our Heritage Jim Zumbo, All Things Outdoors

MAY AD CLOSE

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April 6, 2022

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W W W. P L AI N VALU E S . CO M This publication and its contents are © 2022, Plain Target Marketing, LLC. Individual copyrighted items, trademarks, etc. contained within are the property of their respective copyright holders. No part of this publication may be reproduced or redistributed by any means without authorization from the publisher. Publisher is not responsible for advertisers’ offers, products, or services, and publication neither expresses or implies an endorsement.

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FEBRUARY 2022

contents

April 2022 // Issue 106

serving our neighbor 13

JONI & FRIENDS So That My House Will be Full words by: Alyssa Hupp Joni and Friends is built on biblical truth and the foundation of Jesus Christ. For over 40 years, they've been advancing disability ministry and changing how those with disabilities are treated.

simple living 35

HOMESTEAD + ROOTS Frugal & Healthy Snack Ideas column by: Merissa A. Alink

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CONFESSIONS OF A STEWARD Small Efficiency column by: Joel Salatin On our farm, the first question we ask about a potential enterprise is, "How small can it be?" We believe that if it won't work well small, it probably won't work well big. Almost nothing in life that struggles when small sails smoothly when big.

resources 10

WHISPERS OF HOPE Sometimes There is No Happy Ending column by: Stacey Gagnon

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BUSINESS SPOTLIGHT AG–USA PLAIN VALUES

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ONE MINUTE WITH MARLIN

ON THE COVER

FUNDS AND BENEFITS

Thoughts and ramblings from Marlin Miller, publisher of Plain Values.

In Joel Salatin's column this month, he shares encouragement and wisdom for the little guys.

Every month we provide a listing of opportunities to help out those in need.

community 29

ROOTS + WINGS Flying High column by: Rory Feek It has been such a gift to me to see the roots that Joey helped plant so firmly in the soil here at our farm… to see it take root and grow life and love beyond what any one of us could have imagined.

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THE WIDOW'S PATH Seasons column by: Ferree Hardy Besides springtime, are you in a season of waiting or a season of grief right now? It’s a relief to know that seasons are temporary.

history 49

OUR HERITAGE Printing the Ausbund

(part four)

column by: Elam Stoltzfus Although this article does not deal specifically with the Ausbund, the printing of the Unparteyisches GesangBuch became the model for how the Amish Book Committee dealt with other German books.

outdoors 52

ALL THINGS OUTDOORS ABCs of Venison column by: Jim Zumbo It’s up to you to ensure that your venison is as good as it can be. Common sense and a little know-how will make that happen.

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one minute with Marlin

MY WIFE LISA AND I have a favorite quote, “Adoption: when your family tree becomes an orchard.” Our family will forever be connected to the family trees of each of our children. Even as time passes and seasons change, we remain connected through open adoptions. Each of our children joined our family through a series of connections and events which could only have been orchestrated by God’s timing and ultimate plan, what a miracle!

Our youngest son arrived in what we have described as a surprise adoption. Miles is our most unexpected gift. Upon moving to our home, we had closed our adoption home study and notified our agency and the National Down syndrome Adoption Network that we were not planning to adopt again.

Technically, we should have never even heard about Miles. His birth family connected with someone who then put them in touch with our adoption agency; the person at the agency happened to be the exact person who had worked with our family. Again, they should have never heard about us.

A phone call on a Sunday afternoon led to a meeting a few days later, and Miles arrived at our door and was handed to us with great love by his birth family. We completed a new home study from application to approval in two weeks while caring for our new baby. Just four days before, we had been going about our daily routines with no inclination that something amazing was just around the corner— our family had just grown by two feet.

Lisa's reading a book about miracles. The day before this note was due to our editor, she shared with me a rarely known detail of Joni Eareckson Tada’s story. The miracle of how Joni survived that life-changing dive from a raft in a lake is a testament to our Lord’s sovereignty. The second Joni hit the bottom of the lake, she was paralyzed from the neck down. She was wholly underwater, with no ability to move her arms or legs to propel herself back to the surface.

The clock instantly began ticking. At that moment, her sister was walking toward the shore with her back to Joni when a crab pinched her toe. Joni’s sister turned around to warn Joni about the crabs and saw blonde hair just under the surface; she quickly realized something was wrong and swam to her sister’s aide. The very night before, Joni had bleached her hair on a whim from a “mousy” brown to white-blonde. This act ended up helping to save her life a short time later. Had she not changed her hair color, Joni’s sister wouldn’t have noticed her beneath the water, and she would have most likely drowned.

MARLIN MILLER publisher, always looking for more friends

I find it rather interesting that Lisa shared that story from her book without realizing that this month’s feature story is about Joni Eareckson Tada’s ministry. Even though we had both read her stories before, these were new details of which we had never heard, adding to our amazement of God’s plan for Joni’s life. If we take the time to do so, most of us can look back over our lives and remember something incredible that could be seen as a miracle.

As always, may you find joy in the simple things. //

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serving our neighbor JONI & FRIENDS

S O T H AT M Y H O U S E W I L L B E F U L L

words by: ALYSSA HUPP

"Open your mouth for the people who cannot speak, for the rights of all the unfortunate.

Open your mouth, judge righteously, and defend the rights of the poor and needy."

PROVERBS 31:8-9

IT WAS A HOT JULY DAY, and nothing seemed out of the ordinary. It was likely a normal day for most visitors roaming the Chesapeake Bay, laughing and splashing in the water, and it was a typical day for Joni, a seventeen-year-old girl poised to dive into the water.

An athletic girl skilled at swimming, Joni dove into the water much the same as every other dive she’d taken in the past. But she misjudged how shallow the water was.

One moment. One decision. And suddenly, it was no longer a normal day.

Joni was about to face the harsh reality of creating a whole new definition of an "ordinary day." An active girl's dive into shallow water brought on pain and suffering, but also light, joy, and an incredible ministry for those with disabilities.

That dive into shallow water caused a fracture between the fourth and fifth cervical vertebrae. Joni Eareckson Tada became a quadriplegic (or tetraplegic), paralyzed from the shoulders down.

Joni Eareckson Tada was born in 1949 in Baltimore, Maryland, to John and Lindy Eareckson.

The youngest of four daughters, Joni was given the feminine spelling of her father's name.

Joni was an active teenager, and she enjoyed horseback riding, hiking, tennis, and swimming.

But after that life-changing dive, her life took a different turn. No longer able to enjoy her active hobbies or even get out of bed by herself, Joni had to create a new normal and find a new passion and purpose in life.

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Joni and Friends It took time for Joni, and she struggled with depression, thoughts of suicide, and lack of faith in God. She thought to herself, how could a good God let this happen to her? The people closest to her were pushed away by her anger. But one day, during occupational therapy, Joni learned to paint with a brush between her teeth. This act of creation stirred something within her — she felt a similar passion and purpose for drawing as she did for swimming. Joni began studying the Bible again and recommitted her life to God. To this day, Joni writes the same way as she paints, although she relies on voice recognition software for most writing tasks. To date, she has written over fifty books, recorded several musical albums, starred in an autobiographical movie of her life, and is an advocate for people with disabilities worldwide.

In 1979 Joni and Friends was created to accelerate Christian ministry in the disability community. Joni and Friends is built on biblical truth and the foundation of Jesus Christ. For over 40 years, they've been advancing disability ministry and changing how those with disabilities are treated.

Joni and Friends also hosts Family Retreats (a retreat experience for families living with disability), Warrior Getaways (which offer a similar experience for families of servicemen and servicewomen injured in war), and Wheels for the World.

"Together, our mission is to glorify God as we communicate the Gospel and mobilize the global church to evangelize, disciple, and serve people living with disability." – Joni and Friends

Joni Eareckson Tada (center) visiting a child in Peru in need of a wheelchair

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For over 40 years, they've been advancing disability ministry and changing how those with disabilities are treated.

The 200,000th Wheelchair The long drive had left the Cordova family weary and hungry. But they had arrived, they had finally arrived. They were going to meet people from Wheels for the World so that their son Levi could get fitted for his first wheelchair. Unfortunately, for the Cordovas and many other families in El Salvador, wheelchairs are unaffordable. This gift from Joni and Friends would change Levi's life forever.

Levi has cerebral atrophy and chronic kidney disease and is unable to walk on his own. For his parents Lilian and Ludwin, the weight of carrying Levi was becoming too much for them. It wasn't so hard when he was a small child, but he grew and became harder to carry. As Levi grew, he became restricted by his disability and could not participate in many everyday activities. Yet, Levi was still able to move around some. Seated on his behind, pulling his body forward with the one hand he has control over, he scooted around his home.

But now they had arrived — a once-in-a-lifetime chance to get Levi a wheelchair. With pounding hearts and eager souls, Levi and his family were directed to a wheelchair. Levi's chair. Seated in his new chair, Levi's smile brought tears of joy to the

for them. The small family is seated around a table

faces of everyone that saw him. Hours went by;

where the kind man hands them two books. Levi's

every detail of the wheelchair was made to work

parents study them — a Joni Eareckson Tada book

perfectly for Levi and his needs. The seat was

and a Spanish-language Bible. The pastor talks

adjusted and a chest harness was put in so Levi was

with them more about Jesus and invites them back

safely contained in the chair. The truth of Jesus was

to his church. He ends their meeting with a prayer.

spoken in soft words throughout the process.

He prays for Levi, his family, their safety, and

Levi’s parents cry out “Sabemos que este regalo

thankfulness for Levi's chair — a piece of equipment

vino de Jesús!” We know this is a gift from Jesus.

that will change Levi's life forever.

Fitted with his new chair, Levi and his family

Levi's chair was the 200,000th wheelchair that

are led to a pastor who has another gift waiting

Wheels for the World had fitted for a person in need.

Levi's chair was the 200,000th wheelchair that Wheels for the World had fitted for a person in need.

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