The Miting: An Old Order Amish Novel, page 5
“Sure. Let me finish these dishes and get the counter wiped up. I need a second cup of coffee this morning, anyway.”
Leah sat silently while Maem quickly did the chores, poured herself a hot cup of coffee, and plopped down with a sigh across from her. “I think Benny being a late baby shows my age more.” She grinned. Maem’s rosy cheeks and soft brown eyes glowed with love and contentment. “Now, I’m ready. What’s bothering you?”
“Someone told me something a few days ago that really shocked me.”
“Ja?”
“This person told me … um … they have a problem at home.” She glanced up as worry passed over Maem’s face.
Maem set down her cup of coffee. “Who is this person, Leah?”
“I promised I wouldn’t tell, but this is a bad thing, so I don’t know if I should keep the promise.”
Maem picked up her coffee, sipped, and winced as she swallowed the hot brew. She fumbled for the cream pitcher and poured liberally, creating a billowing cloud across the black-brown surface.
Leah watched as she stirred the coffee to a light caramel color and then took another careful sip. “Tell me what this person said, Leah.”
“She, I mean they, said someone in their home is doing things to them that aren’t right.”
“What kinds of things?” Her eyes widened as she guessed Leah’s meaning. “Is this person Martha?”
“Yes. It was Martha.”
“Was it some kind of abuse?”
Leah nodded.
“Abuse by beating? Or … other things?”
Again, Leah nodded. “And I saw her stepbrother, Abner, hitting her. He was awful, Maem. It scared me. He’s the one who is—abusing her—in other ways, too.”
Maem stopped talking and looked out the window toward Daet’s shop. In the silence, Leah heard the tick-tick of the wooden clock hanging over the sink. A faint rustle from trees scraping the window reached her ears, and she turned toward the sound. The tree’s shadow created a pattern of leaves on the clean floor. “Maem, was I wrong to tell you?”
Maem shook her head slightly but kept her eyes on the window. Finally, she faced her. “Why don’t you get your inside chores finished so you can be ready to help Daet in the shop today? He has a lot of customers scheduled to pick up their furniture. Ja?”
“Shouldn’t I do something? About Martha, I mean?”
Maem thought for a minute but shook her head. “I know it’s not what you want, but we have to let someone know who can help her.”
Maem motioned for her to get on with her chores.
As Leah reached the stairs, Maem added, “We must always be careful when accusing another, Leah. I’ll talk this over with Daet, and we’ll decide together what we should do next.”
From the bottom of the staircase, she watched Maem as she stirred her coffee over and over, and then closed her eyes.
She wasn’t sure Maem believed her. Leah knew many in the community didn’t believe a thing Martha said anymore, but her word—and what Leah herself had witnessed—was evidence enough for Leah about how Abner treated his stepsister.
Maem sighed and rose to rinse her cup at the sink. Leah went up to her room, walked to the window, and waited for Maem to hurry across the yard to the shop. Her pulse hammered at the thought of how Daet would react.
One afternoon a few days later, Benny begged Ada and Leah to play Duck, Duck, Goose in the soft grass where the sun warmed the fallen leaves. As the children’s steps crushed the dry leaves, they released a spicy, pungent aroma of autumn into the air.
Leah’s attention was caught by a passing car. A teen girl waved from inside the shiny red auto. What would it be like to be inside with the Englishers? Would she love the freedom they seemed to enjoy? If she left her family and the Amish, their times together would be limited, maybe even forbidden. She plopped down in the grass and watched her siblings taunt each other, gazing also at the yard, shop, and house. The familiar corners of Daet’s shop, the golden swell of the fields behind the house, the barn sitting so solemnly and importantly at the end of the lane—they all became dear and comforting to her in that moment. The thought of leaving them behind grew unbearable. She wondered if her doubts about the Ordnung could compare to the comfort of knowing this familiar world would be here now, tomorrow, and into the future. If she wanted it to be.
Leah’s thoughts were interrupted when Daet came out of the shop, stopping on the threshold to turn back and lock the door for the day. He crossed the yard, greeted his younger son and daughter with a smile, and then turned to her. His smile faded, he clenched his jaw, and a shadow of resentment lit his eyes.
Her heart twisted, the disappointment on her daet’s countenance dredging sorrow from her very bones. But as quickly as sorrow grew, her own flame of resentment sparked, swelling until it mirrored his.
So this is how it will be? From now on, failure will always be the first thing he thinks of when he sees my face?
“Leah, please come with me to find Maem. We have things to discuss.” He walked ahead with assurance that she would follow along behind. And she did.
Leah glanced at his cold back and realized that the smiles she’d received from Daet in the past were all earned by her dutiful obedience. For the still-obedient Benny and Ada, he had smiles, but for her, only disdain. Apparently his one desire was for her to become a good Amish girl. As her brother had done before her, she was expected to accept her Amish role of church member. Then, as she matured, she would become a supportive wife and mother. Daet had never spoken to her of anything else, and indeed, his role as father did not require much more from him than to provide for her, show her the way to Amish spiritual acceptance, and be the final authority for her decisions.
Leah swallowed and hoped Maem would intervene. She had always been more attentive to Leah’s emotional well-being.
Maem relaxed in the swing on the front porch, a mug of tea in one hand, and the Amish newspaper, The Budget, in the other. She looked up as they approached the porch, scooting over to make room for Daet to sit beside her. Leah took a seat in one of the two wicker chairs facing the swing.
Daet didn’t waste any time. He tented his fingers and leaned forward with his elbows on his knees. “Leah, these accusations Martha is making; who does it involve?”
“She told me a name, but should I tell, Daet? She asked me to keep her confidence.”
“I just need to know this: is she accusing her stepdaet?”
“No. Not her stepdaet.”
His face relaxed a bit, and she noted his mouth softened, too. “These kinds of things have to be handled privately. First, Maem and I will talk with Bishop Miller. We’ll ask his advice about what to do next, but I expect he and the elders will take it from there.” His eyes squinted against the late afternoon sun slanting its way under the porch eaves. “Now, don’t get upset with my next question, but you know Martha’s behavior hasn’t made her a very reliable source for this story.”
She shivered at his words. Could it be that no one would believe Martha’s account?
Daet cleared his throat. “Did you know she’s been seen with a light in her bedroom window? Inviting boys up to her room?”
Leah shook her head, surprised and confused.
He nodded, smug to see he had surprised her and perhaps relieved she didn’t know about that part of Martha’s activities. “Yes. Evidently she had Abe up there.”
“Abe? Why put her lamp in the window for Abe? She could just tell him to come by. Were they—bed courting?”
“No. Well, I don’t know for sure, but I don’t think so. From what I’ve heard, I think they sat at the little window seat she has in there. But it’s not a good practice. I wouldn’t allow my daughters to do that.” Daet glanced at Maem and raised his eyebrows slightly. Maem momentarily turned her gaze away, her eyes scanning the fields across the road. A pink splotch flushed her neck at the top of her collar.
Leah knew a discussion like this was not something a good Amish mother expected to have in front of her husband. The girls usually learned about that part of life from whispered conversations with each other. Or worse, from the boys eager to teach them what to do. Leah had heard rumors for years about that, and about male family members who sometimes crossed lines with their sisters. Her stomach lurched. This entire conversation made her sweat. Suddenly, she thought of the advice one of her friends in school had been given by her mother about bed dating: keep your dress in place.
“We’re hoping the bishop can get to the bottom of this,” Daet continued. “If it’s true, then something needs to be done. But if she’s lying about this, Leah, it’ll not go well for her with the church.” His eyes held a glimmer of suspicion and disbelief.
So, what else is new? Leah squelched the ever-rising flame of anger in her. Why did she even bother telling Maem? She knew Martha wasn’t lying, and if she added to Martha’s burdens, Leah would feel awful.
She stood, stressed and tense. “I have a lot to do in my room. I’d better get to it.”
As she went in the house, all she could think about was Martha. The possibility her friend might find out Leah had told her secret weighed heavy. And if Bishop Miller came down too hard on Martha or blamed her for the trouble, Leah doubted she’d be able to forgive herself. She wrung her hands, wondering if she’d done the right thing after all.
After supper, Leah went directly to her room to search for the pocket-sized New Testament the Gideons had given to each student in the Amish school. After much digging, she finally discovered it in the bottom of a box in her closet, alongside sixth-grade papers and books.
She stretched out on her bed and opened the book to the first page.
“Matthew 1:1. The book of the generation of Jesus Christ …” She soon grew tired of reading the lengthy genealogy of Christ, and skipped to verse 18. “Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph …”
Halfway into reading through the book of Matthew, the life of Christ took on new meaning. She didn’t fully understand everything and wondered what it would be like to attend a Bible study where she could sit with others to discuss her questions.
Her eyes were gritty from reading in the dim light, so she lay the book aside and turned down the lamp.
As she closed her eyes, she wished the house had electric light to keep reading. She wanted to learn more, but mostly, Leah wanted to block out thoughts of Martha and what the bishop might or might not do.
She pondered the idea of contacting the Schrocks. Maybe Maem and Daet wouldn’t mind if she asked the English couple for advice. And if Leah did her best to follow the Ordnung, maybe her parents would also allow her to ask about counseling for Martha and about the Bible study for herself. She yawned. She’d think about asking them. Tomorrow.
Ada roused her the next morning, but Leah was groggy as her sister perched at the foot of the bed and started to chatter. Ada’s lively voice annoyed her sleepy ears. She talked about school, her friends, the coming wedding of their brother, and anything and everything else that popped into her head. Her tactic worked.
Leah struggled up from the covers and moaned, “Please! Stop, Ada. I’ll get up, I promise. Just go away. Please.”
The girl laughed and pulled the covers off on her way out the door. “Come down for breakfast soon. Maem’s making waffles. You know Benny will eat all of them if we don’t hurry.”
Her sister’s shoes clattered loudly on the wooden steps as she hurried down to breakfast. Leah wearily wiped her eyes, and sat up.
As she put her feet on the cold floor, she thought of Martha once again. She decided to never tell another soul the secret entrusted to her. She prayed Maem and Daet wouldn’t mention it, either, or maybe the bishop wouldn’t have time to listen to them.
Maybe she could get away to a Bible study, too.
She felt a little guilty for thinking of her own desires in the wake of Martha’s problems, but it appeared nothing could stop the deep yearning to know more about God’s Word. Whatever happened, she was glad she’d found the little New Testament. She carefully tucked it back into the box of discarded papers and planned to read more of it that night … in secret.
CHAPTER FIVE
Leah, what do you have planned for today?” Maem asked as they were finishing their last bite of breakfast.
“Nothing special, Maem.”
“Would you be willing to take Ada into town? She needs to get tablets, pencils, and a folder for school.”
“Sure.” She looked across the table at her sister. “You almost ready?”
“I want to taste this last bite of waffle.” Ada squeezed her eyes shut as she savored the tasty morsel. “Yum. Maem, you make the best waffles in the world.” After Ada drank her milk and wiped her mouth, she pronounced herself ready and hurried off to grab her purse.
“Maem, about Martha,” Leah said, taking advantage of the private moment.
Her mother reached a tentative hand to Leah’s shoulder. “It’s okay. The bishop said he will check into it soon. I think he is planning to head that way tomorrow.”
Too late. The bishop is involved.
Leah walked to the barn with shaky knees. Readying the horse for the trip to town gave her time to think and calm her whirling thoughts.
It couldn’t be bad for Martha to get help, could it? That should bring only good for her. Please, Gott, please let things go well for Martha.
Sparky was feisty on the way in to Ashfield. Every time a car passed, he skipped to the right a little, and Leah had a difficult time managing him. He also wanted to trot faster than she was comfortable allowing, so she ended up pulling and tugging the reins more than usual. By the time the sisters got to town, Leah’s arms ached from fatigue. She guided the horse to a hitching post and looped the reins.
Ada and Leah walked leisurely to the discount store and strolled among the aisles. It was good to be doing something with Ada. They giggled at a pair of silly-looking pens. Wispy hair glued to the top made the pens resemble wild people, and below the hair, googly eyes rolled around and around. It’d be fun to write with these, but the schoolteacher would never allow such worldly items in class.
After Ada chose her supplies, they headed to the checkout, pausing to choose a few candy bars for themselves and Benny.
As they walked back to the buggy, Leah spotted Naomi Schrock getting into her car across the street at the hardware store.
“Wait here, Ada. I’ll be right back.” Leah made her way through traffic easing past the stores and called to Naomi.
“Naomi! Hi—I have a quick question.”
Naomi paused, turning to greet Leah. “Hello. How are you?”
“Good.” Leah took a deep breath. “I was wondering about the Bible study. Is it at your house? And what time does it start?”
“Yes—it’s at our house. It starts at 6:30. Are you thinking of coming?”
Leah nodded, looking behind her to the parking lot where Ada was watching her every move, pacing to and fro behind the buggy.
Leah swallowed a lump born of anxiety over this bold move. “I’ll need to get a ride, but if I can, I plan to be there.”
Naomi took out a small notebook and scribbled something on it. “Here’s the address. Let me know if you need a ride. Maybe we can arrange something.”
“Thanks. I’d better get going.” She waved a hand toward her impatient sister. “Ada’s ready to go on home.”
“Okay. Hope you can make it. Bye.”
As Leah sprinted back to the buggy, her mind reeled with what she had just done. She wiped sweat off her forehead and tried to relax her tense jaw. Having untied Sparky, she hopped in the buggy as her sister jumped into the other side. Leah tried to disregard Ada’s bemused stare.
Once they reached the outskirts of town, Sparky settled down and trotted along easily. Leah glanced at Ada, who was grinning like Cheshire cat.
“Are you going to go?”
Leah frowned at her sister. “What?”
“Come on. I know why you talked with Naomi Schrock.”
Leah shook her head. Trying to get something over on Ada was hopeless. “Didn’t take you long to get to the point, did it?” she groused.
“Well? Don’t change the subject—are you?” Ada persisted.
“I don’t know. I’d really like to learn more about Scripture, and Maem says I should read our Bible, but it’s in German and I just can’t understand it like I want to. It can’t be bad to learn about God. Can it?”
Ada shrugged. The Bible was a book to her. Leah could tell she thought there were far more interesting books to read.
They chatted back and forth most of the way home, with Ada cooking up ways they could sneak out of the house and places to meet or hitch a ride. Leah was uncomfortable playing this game, but as the conversation went on, she recognized she was storing away ideas for later. Maybe she could use one of these plans to get to a Bible study.
Guilt flooded her heart. Her palms sweat as she considered sneaking off.
As they turned down the road leading to the lane, Sparky sped up, intent on reaching the barn. Leah kept him tightly reined because she didn’t want to get home too quickly.
“It must be really hard to be under the meidning,” said Ada unexpectedly. “Even though they left many years ago, do you think the Schrocks still miss their families?”
She remembered the stories she’d read in the brochure the Schrocks had given her. “I think so. Naomi Schrock said she passed her maem on the street once, but her maem wouldn’t speak to her—just smiled.”
“That would be sad.”
Leah’s mouth trembled when she thought of being shunned. She couldn’t imagine what it would be like not to be near family anymore, not to have Maem or Daet to talk with—or Ada, for that matter. Since the meidning extended to all family members, she’d have to sit at a different table away from her family.
