Sylvia slept till Mamma came into her room at nine o’clock that morning. “Ach, I’m sleepin’ my life away,” she said, rousing herself and sitting up in bed.
“Well, ya didn’t get in till nearly four o’clock, so ya needed the rest.” Mamma sat on the bed, all dressed for a day of visiting.
“You didn’t wait up for me, I hope.”
“Nee, I did my best not to.” Mamma’s smile was very telling. “Someday, when you’re a mother, you’ll understand all about half sleepin’.”
Sylvia reached to hug her. “If I’m half as gut a wife and mother as you are, I’ll be glad,” she said, meaning it with all of her heart.
CHAPTER
thirty-nine
Summertime for Sylvia and Mamma meant hours and hours of gardening, weeding, mowing, cooking, canning, and cleaning. On weekends, Sylvia happily attended Singings and other youth activities with Andy, as well as dates alone with him. She enjoyed sharing what she learned in baptism classes during their Saturday evening dates, sometimes over meals at Andy’s parents’ farmhouse. Her parents had also invited Andy for supper quite a few times, too, where Dat read aloud from the Good Book after dessert. It was heartening to see Andy interact with Dat over passages of Scripture. He never failed to treat him with respect and kindness.
When the longed-for third Sunday in September finally arrived, Sylvia bowed her knee and became a full-fledged member of the Hickory Hollow Amish church. She felt so tenderhearted and happy that she had at last followed the Lord in holy baptism.
It was a warm and bright Saturday afternoon one week later when Andy dropped by to see Sylvia. He asked if she’d like to take a leisurely walk out to the small wildflower meadow near the cluster of trees that Adeline so admired.
Glad to have finished her chores early, Sylvia agreed and left the house with her beloved, enjoying the warm September air. While the road horses wandered through the tall meadow grass, heads low as they wove back and forth, meandering along, the sky to the east was filled with large bands of birds flying in vast spirals.
After they had walked a ways, Andy stopped to pick several late-blooming columbines, their leaves maroon from the cooler nights. He handed the bouquet to her and then, smiling, he reached for her right hand. “Will ya marry me, Sylvie, and be my bride forever?”
Surrounded by wild ferns and the dappled sunlight, she had suspected Andy had a special reason for bringing her here. She fought back tears of joy as she nodded her head. “Jah,” she whispered, looking up at him. “I’d be honored to.”
With the dearest smile on his handsome face, Andy leaned down and kissed her for the first time, sweet and gentle.
“I love ya, Andy,” she whispered, never having felt quite like this.
He kissed her again, holding her near. Then, stepping back, he reached for her hands and asked, “When would ya want to wed?”
All of this felt so sudden, even though she had been yearning for this moment. “We could talk with our families and see when it suits, jah?”
Andy agreed as they stood beneath the largest tree in the grazing land. “If it were up to only me, I’d say the first Tuesday in November . . . as soon as possible.” He winked.
“Ain’t so far away.”
His eyes searched her eyes, her lips, like he wanted to kiss her again. “I love you so much.”
Sylvia felt almost guilty, she was so happy. A rush of love and exhilaration made her think they’d better start walking again.
And as they began to stroll along, Andy told her of the rental house he’d picked out not far from Hickory Lane, since he would be working alongside his father, farming his Dawdi Mahlon’s cropland. “That way I can walk to work, if need be,” Andy said. “And you’ll be within walkin’ distance of your family, too.”
She leaned her head against his arm as they slowly walked toward the horse paddock. “This is the best day ever,” she said softly.
“For now, jah,” Andy agreed.
Sylvia guessed what he meant and smiled. “I’ll ask Dat and Mamma ’bout that first Tuesday in November, then.”
Andy removed his straw hat and tossed it high into the air.
There was something else on her mind, but she held her breath at first, not sure she should ask. Then, gathering the courage, she did. “Is it all right with you if we stay the first few weeks at my father’s house?”
He looked a bit surprised. “’Course. That’s what the bride and groom always do.”
“Okay, just checkin’,” she said, breathing more easily.
They walked a bit farther, and two of the mules wandered across the meadow toward them. “Do ya think your sister and her husband would wanna come to our wedding?” he asked.
Again, she was pleasantly surprised. “Would ya mind?”
“Well, they’re your family. They should be there.”
Smiling, Sylvia loved that Andy was so accepting and kind. The minute her parents and Andy agreed on a date, Sylvia would write to Adeline to share her joyous news.
That evening, while drying dishes for her mother, Sylvia asked if she could talk with her and Dat soon. “I have somethin’ wunnerbaar-gut to share.”
Mamma looked at her quizzically. “My dear girl, it must surely be what we’ve been waitin’ to hear since your baptism.” She paused. “I can tell by your beaming face.”
Sylvia wasn’t the type to be coy, but she did want to tell both of her parents at once. “When’s a gut time?”
“Well, how ’bout as soon as we finish redding up the kitchen?”
Agreeing, Sylvia reached for the next plate and dried it quickly.
Mamma wiped off the far counter, then returned to dunk the dishrag in the sudsy water and wring it out. “I have some nice news of my own,” she said more quietly.
“Oh?”
“I’ll just tell you, daughter, since ya might’ve wondered why I’ve been putting on some added pounds . . . and expanding the seams in my dresses here lately.”
Sylvia smiled, acknowledging what she had come to suspect. “Mamma? You’re expectin’ a baby, aren’t ya?”
Nodding, her mother smiled, as well. “Close to Christmas.”
She reached to hug Mamma, whose hands were deep in the dishwater. “I couldn’t be happier for you and Dat . . . and, oh goodness, for all of us!”
Three consecutive days late in October signaled the beginning of wintry weather with goose gray skies and brisk temperatures. Yet Sylvia did not experience the usual feeling of sadness that normally accompanied the tail end of autumn. This year, she could hardly wait for winter to arrive, since that would mean she and Andy would be settled in as husband and wife. Not so long now, she thought, looking forward to starting their life together as she sorted through her hope chest.
On the morning of November first, Sylvia’s wedding day, she and Mamma, now great with child, talked quietly upstairs in her room while Cousin Alma and Susie Zook got ready in the sewing room down the hall. In a little while, all of them would go down together to the service, where the People were already gathering.
“The Lord’s lookin’ kindly upon ya, dear,” Mamma said as she reached for her hand. “Your Dat and I have prayed ’bout this day since you were a wee girl.”
“And God in His mercy has answered.” Sylvia paused, trying to memorize the radiant look on her mother’s face in this moment. “Denki for bringin’ me up in the ways of the Lord.”
Mamma’s eyes met hers. “Our heavenly Father has shown us mercy indeed, giving us ‘beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning,’ just as it is written in the book of Isaiah.”
Unable to speak but agreeing with every precious word, Sylvia nodded and gently embraced her mother. The dear Lord knew what we needed. . . .
A few minutes later, there was a gentle tap at the door, and Sylvia went to open it. “Adeline!” she said when she saw her, delighted to welcome her inside.
Mamma greeted her, too, smiling. “It’s so gut you’re here for the wedding.”
Adeline hugged them both and explained that she and Brendon had gotten in late last night and were staying at a nearby inn. “We wanted to be with you, Sylvie, to share your joy.”
“I’m so glad. The day wouldn’t have been quite right without ya,” Sylvia said. “I hope you’ll get to stay for the wedding feast.”
Nodding, Adeline said they would be around for two full days. “There’s no way I would miss my sister’s wedding.” She looked at Mamma. “Sylvia told me your news last time she wrote. I can’t imagine how happy you must be, expecting a baby at Christmastime.”
Mamma nodded. “He or she is certainly active here lately, so whenever the Lord wills, I’m ready.”
Adeline’s obvious excitement and Mamma’s coming baby made the already wonderful day all the more special for Sylvia. “Denki so much for sharin’ this time with us,” Sylvia told her. “You don’t know how much it means to me . . . and to Andy, too.”
Adeline gave her another hug and left the room to head downstairs.
“My whole family is here,” Sylvia whispered to Mamma, who nodded sweetly.
———
Earnest watched intently as Bishop Beiler asked Andy Zook and his two male attendants to stand before him. Sylvia and her two female attendants, all three of them in royal blue dresses and white organdy aprons, joined them.
Seeing Sylvia and Andy up there together, about to make their marriage vows to God and to each other, Earnest remembered holding her as a baby, right after she was born. Midwife Mattie Beiler had placed her first in Rhoda’s arms, and after they had both admired her, Rhoda had given her to Earnest. A precious little bundle, he thought, the memory still crystal clear.
In silent awe, he realized, After these next few weeks, we’ll never share the same house again.
Drawing a deep breath, he listened in rapt attention now as the bishop asked the bride and groom, “Do you solemnly promise each other that you will love and care for and show patience to one another, and will not separate from each other as husband and wife till our Lord in heaven shall part you through death?”
In unison, Andy and Sylvia answered, “Jah,” and, as was the People’s way, the couple returned to their seats with no outward show of affection.
Immediately, the bishop spoke a prayer over them, and afterward he invited the other ministers in the district to offer a blessing for the newly married couple, as well.
Earnest was impressed that Amos Kauffman was the first of the two preachers to rise to do so. It won’t be long and Titus will marry Mahlon’s grandniece Betsy, thought Earnest. Marrying into a fine and unblemished family. . . .
In that moment, Earnest realized that Titus’s upcoming union with Mahlon Zook’s family tree would link Titus to Earnest’s family, as well—Sylvia having just married Mahlon’s grandson.
No family is faultless, Earnest thought, helping to flip the benches into tables for Sylvia and Andy’s big feast. Thank the Good Lord for His unfailing forgiveness and grace.
Epilogue
ONE YEAR LATER
Ach, how swiftly the year has passed since Andy’s and my wedding! Honestly, I never could have imagined being this content each and every day. Often, I dashed out the back door and across the yard to meet Andy on his walk home from working with his father. Jah, spending time with Andy was a joy for me and for our newborn son, Andrew, who resembled his Dat in every little feature.
Since Andrew’s birth three weeks ago, I’d fallen a little behind on housework—I would rather nurse and cuddle him. It was just plain hard for me to put him down to sleep, which was all right with me. Work could wait for now. The bliss of becoming a mother was impossible to describe, really. Sleepless nights or not, there were ever so many tender feelings of love and wonderment!
Since I’d been at home a lot lately, I decided this mid-November morning to attend a Sisters Day gathering at the home of Cousin Alma and her husband, Danny Lapp.
When I arrived with my baby all bundled up, I discovered that Cousin Jessie was there, too, as were Susie Zook and her cousin Betsy, Titus’s bride of one year. Mamma and Aendis Hannah and Ruthann were also in attendance.
Each of us had a project to work on as we sat in a cozy circle in Cousin Alma’s spacious front room, the coal stove keeping us toasty warm, including the several new babies present.
Aendi Hannah’s adorable son, Curtis Jr., was only six weeks old but already looked as robust as a three-month-old with his headful of dark hair. Dat and Mamma’s surprise baby boy, named for Preacher Mahlon Zook, was ten and a half months old now as he sat, drooling and babbling, on the floor with blocks. Both Alma and Betsy were expecting their first babies in a few months, as well.
To say the Hickory Hollow church district was undergoing a growth spurt was an understatement, and there was a definite need for the tied baby comforters Aendi Hannah had been making. But with her own long-awaited infant to nurse and care for, there really wasn’t much spare time for those. Oh, how well I know!
Mamma sat next to me, knitting purple squares for an afghan, and I crocheted a soft baby blanket in variegated pastels of yellow and green for my baby, Andrew. I couldn’t tell for sure what Betsy was working on, but it appeared to be a small Nine Patch quilt, perhaps a wall hanging similar to the one Adeline had made. Seeing it brought back such good memories of my half sister’s visits. Although there hadn’t been word in Adeline’s recent letters of a pregnancy just yet, I wasn’t surprised, knowing how caught up she was with her new career. The way she described their busy lives, I felt sure she and Brendon were happy and doing what they enjoyed. Adeline had even mentioned that they regularly attended church social gatherings and hosted a small group in their home once a month, with Brendon assisting their pastor on weekends with campus evangelism.
In her latest letter, Adeline had sent a photo of the glassed-in shadow box she and Brendon had made to display Dat’s gold pocket watch, hanging it on the wall near the tall floor clock my father had crafted for their wedding gift. Adeline said that, whenever they decided to start a family, she planned to give the timepiece to their first child as a special gift on the twenty-first birthday. The Lord willing, of course, Adeline had added, the words followed by her signature smiley face.
My sister-in-law Susie, near me in the work circle, mentioned that her brother Michael was tickled to be working with my father at the clock showroom in Bird-in-Hand. Just yesterday, Dat had offered him a job as an assistant.
“Might there be another clockmaker in the makin’,” I suggested.
“Michael hopes so,” Susie said quietly. “He’s not much for farmin’, ya know.”
Cousin Jessie nodded. “He should do what he loves . . . what he’s called to, like Ella Mae might say.”
I smiled. Even though she was absent today, the Wise Woman was often quoted at such get-togethers, and I always appreciated her wisdom.
When we paused for refreshments, Hannah asked me to hold baby Curtis Jr. while she left the room. Looking into the infant’s dimpled face, I remembered what Andy had said before our own baby was born—that if we had a girl, he hoped she would look just like me. Of course, the dear Lord had given us a son, so we’d just have to wait and see if we had a daughter, too, someday.
Betsy came over to admire Baby Curtis. “By the way, Titus and Andy are ridin’ over together to pick us up,” she reminded. “Then we’ll go back to our place for a light supper.”
“That’s nice of you,” I said, glad there were no hard feelings between Titus and me, and that Titus and Andy were still great friends.
My baby brother came toddling over, and seeing that I was holding little Curtis, Mahlon held up his chubby arms. “Mamma,” he said, pleading with his pale blue eyes.
“He calls every woman Mamma,” I explained to Betsy, handing Curtis back to my aunt when she returned. “That and Dada are his two favorite words so far.”
“Well, he’s sure a cutie,” Betsy said as I reached down and picked up my little brother. Then she added, “
Titus is hopin’ for a boy for our first child. And so is his mother. I guess Eva thinks Titus will need plenty-a help on the farm.” She paused. “She certainly seems to have her heart set on a boy first for us.”
I didn’t ask, “What if you have a girl?” Instead I smiled, but not for the reason Betsy might have assumed. Knowing how easygoing Betsy was, most likely it would take a lot to really annoy her. She and Titus are a good match in that way, I thought, still smiling.
The Good Lord knew that my first beau would not be my true love, I thought, carrying little Mahlon over to the table to get him a piece of goat cheese. “Here’s somethin’ to nibble on.” I glanced at my own baby, sleeping through all the chatter in the cradle Danny had made for his and Cousin Alma’s coming baby.
“Mamma,” my cuddly brother said again, leaning his head against my cheek as my mother caught my eye and smiled.
“Schweschder,” I whispered in his little ear.
As I tried to teach my baby brother to say sister in Deitsch, I considered Adeline and the special way God had woven our far-flung paths to cross right here in Hickory Hollow.
A sister is truly a gift, I thought, knowing full well that our heavenly Father had worked all things together for our good.
Author’s Note
To my surprise, it has been exactly two decades since I wrote a novel with a single sequel, a two-book set. In this novel, it was a thrill to return to Sylvia Miller and her family—including Adeline—for the planning, crafting, and writing of The Timepiece. I loved bringing their story of forgiveness full circle, as it were. I think most of us have struggled at one time or another with forgiving another family member. It’s amazing how the Lord can work in us through that experience to change us for the better.
Besides forgiveness, this novel is about time—past, present, and future—and the timeless aspects of life: the joy of sisterhood, the discovery of divine mercy, the legacy of family, and true love.
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