The Way It Was: True Life Amish Stories

by Ira Wagler

A premier voice of our times on the Amish Culture. Ira Wagler is insightful and passionate. Here is a powerful collection of stories from his blog published for the first time in book form. Stories such as Angels in the Sky, Calling Amos, The River of Jordan, and the full Shepherd Series on Elmo Stoll.

Note from Stephen Wagler,

In 2007 my brother, Ira, went through a life-changing event that led him to start a blog to tell his story. It started as a salve for his wounded heart and developed into a showcase for his gift of writing. For the next 13 years, he wrote hundreds of blog posts on many current events, humor, his childhood, theology, and much more. It was riveting writing, and he had readers – oh, yes, he did! Even now, I run into random people that enjoyed his blogs, such as a local bishop and his sons who read the blog together when it was released every Friday night.
This culminated in Ira writing a memoir that became a New York Times Best Seller. “Growing Up Amish”.
In 2020, Ira’s life changed again. Overnight, he was incapacitated and is now in assisted living, no longer able to write. He has been diagnosed with dementia.
Several of us thought his many blog posts should be preserved for future generations to enjoy. Hence, this book. Thank you to Jerry Eicher for doing the leg work involved in getting Ira’s online work printed.

326 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 9, 2025

About the author

Ira Wagler was born in the small Old Order Amish community of Aylmer, Ontario. At 17, frustrated by the rules and restrictions of Amish life, Ira got up at 2 am, left a note under his pillow, packed his duffel bag and left. Over the course of the next 5 years, Ira would leave and return home numerous times, torn between the ingrained message that abandoning one's Amish heritage results in eternal damnation, and the freedom and possibilities offered by the "English" world. Upon becoming a Christian at age 26, Ira left the Amish for good. He is currently general manager of Graber Supply, LLC and Pole Building Co. in Lancaster County, PA.