by Dalia Wright
“I was happy to give you that. Will you come back to see her?”
“I thought… maybe I could come back to see you both.” Sarah’s heart skipped a beat. He stepped towards her, closing the distance between them. “After all, we could easily co-parent. And maybe, just maybe, I could take you out on a date. To see how things go.”
“A date?” Sarah had never thought she’d be asked out.
“Yes.” He reached out and took her hand, lifting it to his lips. “Would it be alright if I meet you at the market on the weekend? I can drive you home.”
“I’d love that,” Sarah stammered. She couldn’t believe this. She had been forced into being a mother for a child she randomly found, and now she and the father were reunited. And now, what would become of them? Could they make it as a family?
Sarah was sure that, with Gott’s help, they could.
The End
Hannah’s Miracle
By: Elaine Young
Chapter One
It had been three years since Hannah Fisher had taken in the rugged beauty of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains that bordered Monte Vista, CO. The sight of fiery red and vibrant orange colors painting the mountainside along with the valley was a welcoming one. For the first time in three years, Hannah felt her heart lift away from the dark cloud that had been occupying it since the day she left with her mann, Wayne Fisher, three years ago to Lancaster. It had been her oldest sister, Miriam Zook, who had convinced her to come back for a visit for the autumn season.
“Feel gut to be home?” Miriam asked.
“Better than you can imagine,” Hannah replied, sitting back with a contented sigh. “Lancaster is beautiful, but I have missed these views since I left.”
Miriam smiled warmly. “It is beautiful at this time of the year,” she said, softly. “I cannot wait until this little one is here to see the colors of Gott’s beauty.”
One of her hands rested on the swell of a very visible pregnant belly. That had been another reason for Miriam asking for Hannah to come home. As the oldest of the three sisters, Hannah had been the one to take care of her siblings. She couldn’t imagine being anywhere else when her sister finally went into labor.
Even if it were painful to look upon.
Hannah shoved away those unpleasant thoughts. It wasn’t the time to dwell on the other reason for her return home.
The stretch of fields gave way to the numerous hauses and farm land. Hannah practically jumped down from the buggy her sister had ridden in when they pulled into their parents’ barn. She hitched up the skirts of her blue dress, the one that her maemm had sewn for her wedding day to Wayne, and hurried across the backyard to the porch. The back door opened immediately to reveal a smiling Ruth Miller who warmly embraced Hannah.
“I’ve missed you, Ma,” Hannah said.
“I have missed you. You are thin, daughter.” Her maemm’s hands roved over her shoulders. “Your dress does not fit you. Have you not been eating well?”
Hannah stared into her maemm’s concerned gaze. It was tempting for a brief moment to tell her the truth, but instead she forced herself to smile assuredly.
“Nee, Ma. I have lost weight from working in the fields with Wayne. We had a busy harvest this year.”
Ruth looked skeptical at the explanation, but she didn’t push the topic any further. “Is your sister in the barn?”
“I’m here,” Miriam called out. “Hannah left me to tend to the buggy and horses by myself.”
“I’m sorry,” Hannah said, offering a hand to her waddling sister. “My excitement got the best of me. Where are Da and Sarah?”
“Sarah is at Mrs. Holtz’s bakery,” Ruth said. “She’ll be home before the evening. Your Da is building a barn with a few other mensleit.”
Hannah deflated in disappointment, but perked up at the smell of her maemm’s slow simmering roast and baked bread. No matter how much she tried to mimic her maemm’s recipe, it never turned out as delicious. She spent the next twenty minutes helping in the kitchen as though it was old times again before carrying her bag up to her old room.
“So,” Miriam said, panting slightly when they reached the top of the stairs. “Do you want to tell me the reason you agreed to spend a couple of months here back at home rather than with your mann?”
“Nee,” Hannah said, a bit shortly. “I don’t want to spend my homecoming talking about my reasons for coming back here. Ma has already questioned me about it in her letters.”
The smell of freshly laundered sheets and blankets filled the small room. Hannah took in the familiar shadows of her room with a happy smile. A whole bed to herself.
“I’m sorry,” she said, turning to look over at Miriam. “I just don’t want to talk about it right now. Maybe later?”
Miriam studied her face intently for a moment. “If you’re sure that you are all right, Hannah. Ma is right. You have lost quite a bit of weight since I last you.”
“Working in the fields with Wayne is hard work,” Hannah replied. “We had a bountiful harvest this year danka to Wayne’s hard work.”
She turned to look away from Miriam’s stare to unpack her bag busily. She didn’t want her sister to catch sight of the tears in her eyes just thinking of her mann who was thousands of miles away. And it wasn’t because Hannah missed him like most fraas would when parting from their mann’s side.
Hannah swallowed thickly. This was the last thing she wanted to talk about now that she was home with her family. The sound of Sarah’s voice floated up through the floorboard a moment later. Soon, their Da would be home, and everything would feel complete for the first time in three years.
“Let’s go,” she said. “I’m dying to see how much Sarah has grown.”
“Nearly sixteen now,” Miriam said, wistfully. “She starts rumspringa in a few weeks. Can you believe it?”
Hannah paused in front of the very pregnant swell of Miriam’s belly. It was such a beautiful sight of Gott’s blessing growing that it nearly brought tears to Hannah’s eyes. How many times had she prayed to be in Miriam’s situation? Too many times to count.
“I can’t believe you are about to have a bobli,” she said, softly. “I’m glad that I’m going to be here to see it.”
“I am, too.”
Miriam hugged her tightly before grabbing ahold of her Hannah’s hand, giving it a tender squeeze.
“One day Gott will bless you with a bobli. I know that it will happen for you.”
“I hope so, too,” Hannah whispered. “More than you can ever imagine. I hope so, too.”
Chapter Two
The next morning, Hannah rose early to pray with her parents, and to enjoy the familiar smells and sights of home. She sat on the back porch step with a cup of steaming kaffee in hand while she waited for her Da to finish speaking with her Ma in private. It gave her a small amount of time to enjoy the peaceful air surrounding the back field of her parents’ farm.
The back door screeched open.
“There you are,” Sarah said, folding herself onto the back porch step as well. “Are you coming into town with Da and me?”
“I am,” Hannah said. “I told Da that I would help him with the store while I was visiting.”
The youngest Miller sister frowned deeply. She had grown since the last time Hannah had seen her at the tender age of thirteen. Her blonde locks were a rich honey color, and pulled up in a neat bun pinned beneath her kapp. Crystalline colored eyes sparkled when the morning sun caught them. There was even a faint pepper of freckles dusting Sarah’s nose and cheeks.
She would have no problems finding a mann, Hannah thought to herself.
“Ma said that you were visiting for a few months,” Sarah said. “I don’t think you are visiting just to help Da and to be here for Miriam’s bobli.”
And she was way too observant for her own good.
Hannah tugged on Sarah’s kapp string affectionately. “Don’t worry about me, little sister. I am here for many reasons.”
“We’re just worried about you,” Sarah commented. “Ma is worried sick that you aren’t eating enough, but Da is assuring her that Wayne wouldn’t let you starve.”
Just the mention of Wayne’s name made Hannah’s stomach coil tightly. She had promised to call from her Da’s store to let him know that she had arrived, but Wayne was never one for caring about things like that. He hadn’t even told her goodbye the morning she had left.
“Nee, he is a gut man,” Hannah said.
Their conversation was interrupted thankfully by the heavy steps of John Miller as he approached his two daughters with a smile.
“Are we ready to go?” he asked.
Hannah rose along with her sister. “Ja, Da. We’re ready to go. I’m eager to see town after so long.” She smiled warmly at him. “I did not get to see much yesterday.”
The sight of town didn’t disappoint. Main Street was slow with cars and a few buggies as John slowed down to let Sarah hop off in front of Holtz’s bakery.
“Have a gut day!” Sarah called to them. She rushed up to the front door of the bakery, turning to give them a cheerful wave before slipping inside.
John chuckled as he gave the reigns a sturdy flick. “Your sisters have been quite excited about your homecoming. They have talked nonstop about it.”
“I’ve missed them,” Hannah said, smiling. “I didn’t want to miss Miriam going into labor either.”
“Soon,” John said. “How is Lancaster?”
Hannah directed her attention to stare out at the passing buildings. “Just as I remembered it when I was little,” she said, quietly. “It has grown quite a bit, but everyone is lovely there.”
“And yet you still sound so sad?”
She turned to give her daed a surprised glance. “I sound sad?”
“Your maemm has expressed concern over your well-being to me,” John replied, his own gazed fixated on the road ahead of them. “I have told her that whatever it is, Gott will help you through whatever trials you are facing.”
A small part of her went bitter at that. Hannah expected a response like that from her daed. Parents never involved themselves in their kinners’ lives once they were married. Such things were private, and she didn’t want to talk about the truth behind her visit. She knew what her daed would say.
Hannah spent the afternoon helping her daed clean up the store while attending to customers who wandered in. She chatted idly with a few members of their community who came in to buy supplies. It wasn’t until nearly three o’clock that Hannah could break away to borrow the phone to call Wayne’s store.
“Wayne’s Wagon Repair.”
Her mann’s crisp and prompt voice echoed in her ear. Hannah twirled the small cord around her finger nervously.
“It’s me, Hannah.”
“Hannah? Where are you calling from?”
“My Da’s store,” Hannah replied. “I just thought this would be faster instead of waiting on a letter. I’m glad I caught you before you went home.”
“I’m on my way,” Wayne said, coolly. “I’m summarizing that you have made it home fine?”
Hannah’s throat tightened at his aloofness. “Ja, I have.”
“Gut. I did not pay for a train ticket for you to be somewhere else,” Wayne said.
The disapproval in Wayne’s voice was unmistakable. He had been resistant against the idea of her leaving the haus when it needed someone to clean and look after it, but after the past four months, he had handed her a train ticket home.
“I just wanted to let you know that I’m here while I was in my Da’s store is all,” Hannah said.
“I’m glad Gott graced you with safe travels. I have to leave, Hannah. The cooking doesn’t cook itself.”
He hung up before Hannah could reply that she had prepared several nights’ worth of meals before storing them in their ice box below the haus. She blinked back tears at the abruptness, but forced them away when John entered the back office.
“Do you mind running to the hardware store two blocks down?” John asked. “I am running short on some screws for the shelves.”
Hannah’s heart lifted at the thought of taking a walk. With her Da’s instructions, she walked slowly down the sidewalk to enjoy the crisp afternoon. The hardware store was cold and meticulously clean when Hannah entered through the front door.
“Can I help you?”
She turned to find a tall English man with jet black hair standing behind the front counter. He arched an eyebrow at her curiously.
“I need some screws,” Hannah said. “My father needs them for his shelving.”
“What type?”
Holding out the screw her daed had given her to show, Hannah followed the English man to an aisle full of various screws. She caught the faint smell of petrichor clinging to the man’s tattered clothes intermingling with the smell of soap as well.
“These are it,” he said, scooping out a small pile into a small paper bag. “Your father is John Miller, right?”
Hannah started in surprise when he turned to look at her expectantly. “Yes, he is. How do you know him?”
The man let out a rumble of laughter. “Your father is in here all the time for supplies for fixing up the store. You’re one of his daughters because you look exactly like him and your sisters.”
“Oh.”
She grimaced at how awkward that sounded. While Lancaster was an Amish community, Hannah could go a couple of days sometimes while working at the quilt shop seeing new faces, English and Amish. It wasn’t so much of a surprise to hear that this English man knew her father and sisters.
“I mean, I’m Hannah,” she clarified. “I’m the oldest daughter.”
“Ah. I’m Mason Smith.”
He held out a large hand that Hannah took gingerly. His hand was strong and even a bit rough against her own, but there was a notable gentleness to them.
“Thank you for your help,” Hannah said, taking the paper bag from him. “How much do I—”
Mason held up a hand. “No need. After everything your father has helped me with, it’s free of charge.”
“Are you sure?” Hannah asked, uncertainly. “I don’t wish to get you into trouble with the owner.”
He leaned forward to give her a rather rogue and charming wink that had Hannah’s heart flipping.
“I’m the owner, so I think I’m okay,” Mason whispered.
Hannah’s cheeks burned hotly. She fiddled with the brown paper for a few seconds before nodding goodbye to Mason.
“Thank you again,” she said.
“Have a good day.”
The cold air felt good against Hannah’s cheeks when she stepped out of the store. She did her best to shake away the fluttering sensation in her stomach before returning to her daed’s store.
“Ah, danka,” John said, taking the bag with a smile. “Did Mason help you find the right ones?”
“Ja, he did,” Hannah replied.
She looked away to hide the blush on her cheeks. She had no idea why Mason, an English man of all things, had provoked a reaction she never had before. Either way, Hannah vowed to stay clear of the hardware store as much as possible.
Chapter Three
What hope Hannah had for a peaceful visit without her sister’s inquiries fell short when Miriam insisted on a walk down the road.
“If you’re sure,” Hannah started, eyeing the impressive swell of Miriam’s belly. It seemed like her sister’s belly had grown even larger over the past week.
Miriam waved away her concerns. “Of course, I’m sure. The midwife told me that walking could help encourage this bobli to come out.”
They bundled up in warm coats before stepping out into the grey overcast afternoon. The gravel beneath Hannah’s shoes crunched loudly as they walked along the road with freshly cut hay fields. The day was utterly cold and dreary with the threat of rain looming over the mountains.
It fit Hannah’s mood perfectly.
“Tell me what’s going on,” Miriam said, and
quickly held up a hand to silence Hannah’s protests. “I’ve let you go a whole entire week without asking. I never asked in our letters either. I can tell that something is going on. What is it?”
What could she possibly say?
Tears flooded Hannah’s eyes. Three years ago, Wayne had looked at her with such love and passion that she never once imagined how badly things could go. They had married after her parents’ encouragement when Hannah reached twenty-six years old with no one else in the community to court and marry. Wayne had been the perfect mann and gentleman back then. He had been so eager and full of dreams when they moved to Lancaster to open his wagon repair store.
After that, there was the endless stretch of months of no bobli. No matter how many times Hannah had prayed, or tried to understand why they had yet to be blessed with a bobli, it had already taken its toll on Wayne after a period of time. She couldn’t even remember the last time he had fallen asleep in bed next to her. For an entire year, Hannah cried herself to sleep every night while her mann slept downstairs in his own private torment. She was at an utter loss of what to do until Miriam had written her out of concern with the invitation to come stay for the autumn season.
“Hannah?”
Miriam placed a hand on her elbow in concern. “What is it? Why are you crying so hard?”
“I don’t know what to do,” Hannah cried out then. “I have prayed night after night, but Gott has been so silent towards me. I feel as though I have done something horribly wrong.”
“What would you have done horribly wrong? Hannah, you have never once outright lied or harmed anything during your entire life. How could you think of such things?”
“I don’t know, but all I know is that I am losing my mann.” Hannah used the end of her coat sleeve to wipe away her tears. “He barely looks in my direction, Miriam. He wants a bobli so bad that I feel such a horrible ache all the time. Family means everything to us.”
“That doesn’t mean he should be angry with you,” Miriam said, frowning. “If it isn’t time, it isn’t time for a bobli. It isn’t your fault, Hannah. Gott has plans for us, and we should always trust in that.”