Amish Circle Letters (11 page)

Picking up her work from her lap, Miriam returned to crocheting. Anna watched her mother-in-law’s fingers move, a fluid motion of wrapping the yarn around the crochet hook and pulling it through the loop in the chain. It was almost musical in nature. Her hands moved so quickly, feeding the yarn to the crochet hook as if she were a machine. It was beautiful to watch. And, while doing this, her mother-in-law was obviously involved in deep thoughts. “Mayhaps he just wants more freedom than he gets when he hires those Englische drivers.”

“I suppose,” Anna said. But she wasn’t really convinced.

Steve pulled the buggy alongside Mary Ruth. He had spotted her on the road, walking back to Leah’s house from the Yoder’s farm. He hadn’t been certain that it was his sister at first but he remembered that she was helping the widower during his transition. He didn’t envy his sister and said a silent prayer of gratitude to God that he had been born a man and a farmer. Women seemed to get moved around a lot before marriage, working at markets, stores, or houses while a man who farmed had a steady routine.

When he stopped the buggy, Mary Ruth looked up at him in complete surprise. “Steve! What on earth…?”

He shrugged his shoulders. “Felt like taking a ride. Plus Anna asked me to drop off these apple crunch pies.” He motioned for Mary Ruth to climb into the buggy. It jiggled under her weight as she settled next to him on the blue velour seat. “How you making out over here?” he asked.

“Don’t ask,” she said glumly. “That Yoder man is miserable. And I feel like I’m just cleaning up after everyone, Menno’s house in the morning and Leah’s in the afternoon! I just want to come home.”

He nodded his head as if he understood what she meant. It didn’t sound like fun having to help a fresh widow pick up the pieces to his life, especially one that was known for being a bit on the stubborn side. Slapping the reins on the horse’s back and clucking his tongue, Steve directed the horse down the road. The buggy lurched forward as it began to roll along.

“What’s new at home anyway?” she asked, her heart heavy with longing for her own bed and Mamm’s good home cooking. If Leah was a poor housekeeper, she was an even poorer cook.

“Not much,” he said. Then, as if an after-thought, he added, “Isaac is going to let Katie tend to that Eleanor woman’s pony at Gideon’s place.”

“A pony?” Mary Ruth repeated and raised an eyebrow. “What’s that about?”

Steve slowed the horse down as a car sped past on his left. “That Eleanor is boarding some ponies at Gideon’s farm for a while and Katie wants to care for one. Isaac and Anna think it will help calm her spirit a bit to take on that responsibility. If it works, they will keep the pony at our farm.”

“Gideon’s farm is just on the other side of the Yoders’ place, ain’t so?” The wheels in her mind were turning, an idea forming that gave her hope on how to get the Yoder family in shape so that she could finally return home.

Steve nodded. “Ja,” he said. “Oh and that Shep…crazy dog! Seems to like sleeping in the buggy. Isaac keeps finding him curled up in the back. The other day, he was halfway to the market when the dog woke up and jumped onto the seat next to him. Scared Isaac half to death!”

They both laughed.

It was half an hour before he managed to escape Leah’s chaotic house. It always amazed him how Leah could be so very different from his other sisters. Unorganized, frantic and more than a little self-absorbed. He just shook his head thinking about how Mary Ruth had been forced to stay there. He knew that they had she had her work cut out for her at Leah’s. He wondered how her husband, Jonah, could put up with the chaos and mess in the house.

As the horse drove down the road, he began to think about Mimi. He couldn’t imagine her being like Leah. No, he thought. Mimi was certainly a tidy housekeeper and hard-worker. If he had learned anything about her, he had learned that.

Today, he was picking her up for a nice long buggy ride and a stroll in the park. It would be the third time that they had spent time together. He smiled to himself, remembering their picnic last week. She had been delightful company. In fact, he couldn’t remember the last time he had smiled and laughed so much. She had a funny way of looking at things and saying what she meant. And her energy! She was full of it.

When he pulled up to the Hostetler’s farm, he was glad that she was already outside. He wasn’t ready to have to talk to her parents or deal with the suspicions from the community. Ideal minds meant overactive tongues, his mamm had always said. For that reason, he was especially grateful that she lived in a different church district. That would help keep the questions at bay. But it sure was difficult dealing with the questions at home whenever he needed to borrow a buggy.

“Well hello there, Steve Fisher ,” she said jovially as she slid open the door to the buggy and peered inside. Her eyes flashed and she smiled brightly at him. “What brings you here, today?”

For a moment, he looked confused and quickly reached into his memory. Today was the day that he had mentioned going for a buggy ride, wasn’t it? “I..I thought that…”

Mimi laughed and climbed into the buggy, settling down next to him. “I’m teasing you,” she said, nudging him gently with her elbow. “Did you think I forgot?”

His heart swelled. She was so very different from other girls, full of surprises and joy. He liked that very much. Other girls were not as confident and tended to be quiet and shy. He had always dreaded those types of girls and avoided them when he was younger. On the few occasions that he had taken a girl home from a singing, the rides had been quiet and subdued. It was as if the girls were afraid to open their mouths and speak.

Not Mimi Hostetler.

“Where shall we go today, then?” he asked.

Pursing her lips, she appeared deep in thought. Then, smiling, she said, “How about some ice cream? It’s a nice day for it, ja?”

The horse walked slowly down the road. Steve made certain to purposefully keep some tension in the reins, willing the horse to keep the slow and steady pace. He listened to her tell him about her week at the store. She laughed about the Englischer customers who pretended to peruse the aisles when all they really wanted was to talk with an Amish person. She told him that another barn had been vandalized on the other side of town. And she mentioned that she was looking forward to church Sunday at Leah’s house in the upcoming week.

“Will you be there?” she asked curiously.

“Ja, I imagine,” he said. “Whole family is likely to attend. I know my mamm and sisters are planning to come up to help with the cooking and to clean the house.”

Mimi nodded but didn’t respond. Leah’s poor housekeeping was common knowledge and Steve was appreciative that Mimi was respectful enough not to comment.

“I don’t recall seeing you there before,” she said casually.

“
Nee
,” he admitted. “Never went before. Stuck to my own district.”

“Really?” She stared up at him with large, bright eyes. “So why are you coming this year?”

He glanced at her and felt his heart jump when he saw her eyes. So sparkling and full of life. Her entire face seemed to glow and he felt himself feeling weak. For the past two weeks, he had been praying to God, asking for guidance. He didn’t want to get his hopes up, hopes that someone as marvelously godly and wonderful as Mimi Hostetler might actually be interested in him, but seeing her hopeful eyes gazing at him, he knew.

“I…” He wasn’t certain how to respond, but clearly she was waiting. “I guess that…”

“Ja?” she asked.

“I don’t want to presume anything but…”

“Go on,” she prodded gently.

He cleared his throat and took a deep breath. “I sure do like spending time in your company, Mimi Hostetler.”

A hint of a smile tilted the corner of her mouth. “Is that so?”

He stared straight ahead, afraid to look at her. “And if you feel the same, well…”

“I do.”

He paused. “You do what?”

“Enjoy your company, Steve Fisher.”

And there it was.

His heart pounded and he caught his breath. After so many years, it had finally happened. He had given up, that was for sure and certain. He had never expected to find someone but now, here he was riding alongside a beautiful young woman who had just told him that she enjoyed his company. And that meant only one thing:
they were courting.
Officially courting.

He swallowed, a moment of panic rising in his throat. He had never before truly courted anyone. Just a few rides home from singings but never with the same girl twice. Now, it was official. He didn’t know what to say or what was expected. Certainly they would keep spending time together and, if all went well, he knew that an announcement would be forthcoming. The pit in his stomach grew larger.
An announcement?

He felt her hand on his arm. Once again, he looked at her. With her hair pulled back so neat and shiny under her prayer kapp and her face glowing, she was truly beautiful. Her goodness shone from the inside out.

“You look pale, Steve,” she said softly. It was as if she could sense his nervousness. “Are you OK?”

“I…I just didn’t expect any of this,” he admitted. He disliked feeling flustered and, even more, he hated sounding so naïve. But it was the truth and, if nothing else, he knew that courting meant discovery and truth.

Mimi took a deep breath and reassured him with a smile that warmed his heart. “Nor did I,” she replied. Yet, she looked confident and content as she settled back into the buggy seat next to him, her arm lightly pressed against his. “But God sure does work in mysterious ways, that’s for sure and certain!”

Anna was washing the dinner dishes when she heard the buggy roll down the driveway. She glanced out the window then looked at the clock. Steve had been gone for over three hours and had missed helping Isaac with the milking. She hoped nothing was wrong over at Rachel and Leah’s.

She could see Isaac on the hill in the back field. Despite Steve’s disappearance, Isaac had finished the early evening milking and had let the cows wander back into the paddock to graze throughout the night. Now, he was walking along the fence line, checking it for breaks. Katie and Benjamin were chasing each other through the field, keeping him company. Shep was running alongside. It was the perfect moment and she smiled to herself, feeling God’s love surrounding her and her family.

Shutting off the water, she reached for the dishtowel and dried her hands. She was hoping to have a moment alone with Steve, see if she could uncover where he had been all day and make certain that everything was all right at his sisters’ farms.

The door opened and he walked in, carrying the two containers. He seemed far away and barely said more than hello to Anna. He set the containers on the table and walked across the kitchen floor toward the door that led to the great room, the room reserved for church Sunday, which connected both sides of the house. She stood at the counter, a hand on her hip as she watched him, her mouth hanging open.

“Steve?”

He stopped and looked up. “Ja?”

“You OK?”

He nodded and said dismissively, “Ja, ja.”

Anna frowned. “You feeling poorly?”

He looked surprised. “No, not in the least.”

“Everything all right at Leah and Rachel’s?”

He frowned. “Of course.” And then he disappeared through the doorway.

What in the world
, she thought, staring at the space where he had just passed through. Determined to find out what was going on, Anna set the towel on the counter and followed him. Her younger
kinner
were visiting with Miriam so she would just go over there to collect them in preparation for bedtime, but in truth, she wanted to see if Miriam noticed Steve’s strange behavior.

The
kinner
were playing with an alphabet puzzle, laying out the pieces along the floor. Miriam was back in her chair, crocheting while there was still daylight. Anna looked around. The room was empty, besides Miriam. Had she imagined that strange conversation?

“Did Steve just pass through here?” she asked, walking toward Miriam. She glanced around the room again.

Looking up at her daughter-in-law, Miriam frowned. “Ja. He said he was going to bed. Early day tomorrow.”

“Mamm,” Anna said, sitting down on the sofa. “He just walked through my kitchen as if he wasn’t even there!”

She laughed. “Of course he was there, if he walked through the kitchen!”

Anna shook her head. How could she explain it so that Miriam would understand? “That’s not what I meant. He was somewhere else, barely said hello, and just kept on walking. Something’s wrong.”

With a familiar tsk, tsk of her tongue and a frown, Miriam raised an eyebrow at Anna. “Best be thinking of something else, Anna. If he wants us to know what’s on his mind, he will do so but in his time, not yours.” She lowered her eyes back to her crocheting. “Minding our own business is the best way, ja?”

Frustrated, Anna didn’t reply. She knew that Miriam was correct but that didn’t stop her from being concerned. Something was bothering Steve and no one seemed to care. No one, she realized, except herself.

Chapter 5: Lizzie’s Letter

Dear Family,

Seems strange to write a letter knowing that I will see all of you next week at sister Leah’s for church. Sure do wish I lived closer so that we could come help prepare the house and food for the glorious day. Still, we are all looking forward to worshipping the Lord together, enjoying fellowship, and catching up in person.

Abraham and the boys have been busy working in the fields. We had a cow get caught up in a fence and that left quite a mess in the pasture. Cow should recover…just some scratches on her legs from the wire.

Our Susan is finally old enough to go on a camping trip with some of the other girls from her youth group. She’s most excited about that. Not certain how she will feel after spending a few days living in a tent and cooking over a fire pit!