by Mayne, Debby
“Howard is coming here this afternoon to talk to me some more. I think it would be best if Rosemary left before that.”
“What time?” Ruthie asked.
“He said late, so tell her she can leave at two.”
“Do you still want me to take her to lunch at Penner’s?”
“Ya,” he said, “tell you what. Take her to lunch at one after the crowd has a chance to die down. I will pay her for the time since you will probably discuss the store and answer any questions she has.”
Ruthie brought the information back to Rosemary, who still hadn’t moved. Some of the fear appeared to have subsided, but she was still obviously nervous.
The bookkeeping system wasn’t complicated, so it didn’t take long for Ruthie to show her how to balance the numbers. “I can show you a couple of times; then we’ll work together before I turn you loose on it.”
Rosemary nodded. “I’m wondering something, Ruthie.”
“What’s that?”
“Since you have been doing this for so long, and you obviously know what you’re doing, why does your father want me to learn this?”
Ruthie wondered the same thing, but she wasn’t about to let on. “I think he wants backup, just in case something happens and I can’t do this anymore.”
“Oh.” Rosemary still didn’t look convinced.
“It’s never a bad idea to have more than one person who knows how to do a job. We also need more salespeople to work in the store during busy seasons.”
“I just hope I am able to help.” She glanced down shyly. “I’m not exactly the most outgoing person.”
Ruthie smiled. “After you learn the job, you will do just fine. Would you like to see the ordering process now? Papa generally handles it, but there are times when he’s swamped and I have to jump in and help.”
Ruthie went over how to do inventory and ordering. Rosemary didn’t say much, so Ruthie assumed she understood. By the time one o’clock came, Ruthie had shown Rosemary most of the operation of the store.
“Ready for lunch?”
Rosemary gave her a shy smile. “Ya, I am very hungry.”
Papa handed Ruthie some cash to treat Rosemary to lunch. “You don’t need to come back to the shop,” he told Ruthie. “I don’t expect a crowd.”
“Mr. Krahn’s coming,” she reminded him. “You might need me to tend the shop while you talk to him.”
“I don’t have anything to say to him. If I am alone in the shop, I will have work to do.” He fixed her with a firm gaze. “The more I think about it, the more I know it is wrong for him to do this.”
Ruthie could tell he knew what he needed to do. “Okay, I’ll go home and help Mother.”
Rosemary stood by the door watching. Ruthie joined her, and they walked to Penner’s in silence.
Charles kept watch for David while Pop packed their lunches. Mom had already left for her job, so the house was quiet. In the past, either Pop or Charles turned on the TV first thing just to have noise in the house. Over time since working for Abe, they’d gradually gotten out of the habit.
David showed up a couple of minutes early as usual. He said he’d rather wait than keep someone else waiting.
All the way to the farm, Pop and David discussed the various crops while Charles partly listened but mostly thought about something he’d been considering for a while. School had become less important to him, and he loved working on the farm. He wondered what Mom and Pop would say if he told them he wanted to quit his studies and work for Abe full-time. Abe could obviously use the help.
David occasionally glanced at Charles in the rearview mirror. “You okay back there? You’re awfully quiet.”
“I’m fine. Just doing some thinking.”
David laughed. “Sometimes my wife tells me I think too much.”
Pop glanced over his shoulder from the front passenger seat. “Are you worried about something, Charles? You’ve been awful quiet lately—even at home.”
Charles lifted a shoulder in a half shrug. He didn’t think this was the time or place to discuss his future.
“Not worried exactly,” Charles said slowly. “We can talk about it later.”
David cast another quick glance in the mirror before changing the subject. “Looks like we might get some rain this afternoon. Want me to pick you up early?”
“I’ll call you if we do,” Pop said. “Abe might need us for some chores in the house or barn.”
Charles kept his eyes peeled on the farmland as they approached Abe’s place. The change in scenery—from touristy beach town to the farms and land waiting to be farmed—wrapped him in a sense of peace. He felt as though he’d been living in two completely different worlds since they’d been attending the Mennonite church. Eventually he’d have to make a decision between the two, and at the moment, the simple life won hands down. It was difficult to keep his eyes focused on the Lord when his schoolwork led him in a more worldly direction. He sometimes wondered how Abe had managed to go all the way through college without losing some of who he was.
As soon as they pulled up in front of the farmhouse, Abe walked outside and stepped down off the porch. He leaned over and chatted with David while Charles and his pop got out of the car. David pulled away, and the men went into the house to put their lunches on the kitchen counter.
“I told David to come early today. We will get as much work done this morning as possible; then you can go on home. I’m taking Mary and the baby into town, so I thought it would be a good idea to make one trip instead of two.”
Pop nodded. “I have plenty to keep me busy at home with some things Lori wants done around the house.”
“Have you decided what to do about your house yet?” Abe asked as they started their trek toward the barn.
“We have to get caught up before we make any decisions,” Pop replied.
“Ya, that is a good idea for business purposes. If potential buyers know you are behind, they might try to take advantage of you.” He unbolted the barn door and opened it wide. “We have been praying that you make a wise decision.”
“So have we,” Pop said as he cast a brief glimpse in Charles’s direction. “Lori and I pray about it every night. At first I was concerned she wouldn’t be okay with moving out of her dream house, but now she says her dream has turned into a nightmare.”
“That happens,” Abe said. “Particularly when we try to tell the Lord what we want without listening to what He wants for us.”
All morning Charles thought about Abe’s words. In the past, Mom and Pop spent all their time planning for a future filled with everything money could buy. They didn’t even bother waiting until they had the money either. Instead they charged everything to their credit cards, assuming the money would always be there. Although he hadn’t heard his parents fighting, he sensed their tension as their concern about making ends meet increased.
What he now found amazing was the way the heated discussions had subsided. They still disagreed, but instead of letting the arguments escalate, they turned to prayer. The problems didn’t disappear, but with God’s direction, they’d begun to take action in lowering their debt. And instead of turning Charles down as they once had when he offered his financial assistance, they accepted. Pop had once told him he had too much pride to allow his son to pay the bills. Charles appreciated being able to help out. It made him feel more like the man he knew he was.
They broke for lunch and headed down toward one of the lakes on the edge of Abe’s property. Some of the other farmhands chose to stay in the backyard, but Charles wanted to talk to Pop in private.
“What’s on your mind, Son?” Pop asked as he leaned against a tree, sandwich in hand.
Charles chewed his bottom lip then decided to just let his thoughts out. “I’m thinking about dropping out of school.”
Pop didn’t even flinch. “I thought you might wind up doing this.”
“Are you okay with it? We always talked about how important education was.”
“Education is important,” Pop said. “But that doesn’t mean you have to stay in a college program that doesn’t lead you to anything you want to do. You can’t keep taking classes without a goal in mind.” He turned and faced Charles. “So have you decided exactly what you want to do … besides being a clown?” A smile played on his lips.
Charles laughed. “That was a rather silly dream, wasn’t it?”
“Not really. There are plenty of clowns who do quite well.”
That was one of the things Charles always appreciated about Pop. Although in the past he’d stressed the importance of education, if Charles wanted to do something, he was able to do it without parental resistance.
“I love working on Abe’s farm,” Charles said. He finished the last of his sandwich and opened his bag of chips. “It gives me such a good feeling at the end of a long day.”
“Yeah, I know exactly how you feel. I like it, too.” Pop rolled up his empty chip bag and extracted a cookie from his lunch box. “Why don’t you finish the semester and take some time off?”
Charles didn’t want to finish the semester, but he understood what Pop was saying. “Okay.”
“After we sell the house—that is, if we can find someone to buy it—maybe we can think about buying some land.”
Charles thought about the bills they still owed. “Maybe we can live in town and continue working here until all the bills are paid off.”
Pop chuckled. “Good thinking. I like the idea of not having all those bills hanging over my head.”
“What’s your thinking about the church?” Charles asked. He’d been wondering about this, and now seemed a good time to bring it up.
“You do realize there are some people there who don’t trust us, right?” Pop said. “I don’t want to impose on anyone who doesn’t want me.”
“The Lord wants you,” Charles said, “and that’s all that really matters.”
Pop looked out over the horizon before turning back to Charles and patting his shoulder. “I don’t know how this happened, but my son is getting smarter than his old man.”
“That’ll never happen.” Charles closed his lunch box, stood, and dusted off the back of his jeans. “Let’s get back so we can finish up before David comes to pick us up.”
As they walked back to the Glicks’ backyard, Charles inhaled the fragrance of plants and fresh dirt. He couldn’t remember anything smelling this good.
An hour and a half later, they were in David’s van heading back to town. Mary spoke quietly with Abe in the middle seat, their baby in a car seat in the middle section, while Charles and Pop stared out the side windows.
Ruthie noticed how quiet Papa was during supper. Mother occasionally glanced back and forth between Papa and Ruthie, but she didn’t say anything. Finally when she got up to serve dessert, Papa motioned for her to sit back down.
“I would like to discuss some things with the two of you,” he said.
“Can’t it wait?” Mother asked.
“Neh. I would like to do it now.”
Mother folded her hands in her lap and nodded. Ruthie could tell Mother already knew what was going on. She turned to Papa. “What is so important that we have to talk about it now?”
“I spoke with Howard Krahn this afternoon. He seems to think the reason we are not opposed to the Polks joining the church has something to do with Charles courting you.”
“We’re not exactly courting.” Ruthie glanced down at the table as her cheeks flamed.
Papa propped his elbows on the table and steepled his fingers. “That is not the way people in the church see things.”
“Why would that be a problem?” Mother asked. “I would think that would make people appreciate the Polks even more.”
“Not the way they look at it,” Papa said. “Howard seems to think we stand a good chance of losing Ruthie to the world if she continues seeing Charles.” He turned and faced Ruthie with a long gaze before shaking his head and turning back to Mother. “Our daughter has a good head on her shoulders. I don’t see her leaving the church for any man. Besides, if the Polks are sincere—and I think they are—it is a decision that requires many hours of hard work and effort.”
“Ya,” Mother agreed. “I don’t think someone who wasn’t sincere would go to that much trouble.”
Ruthie listened to her parents discussing the Polks and decided this was probably not a good time to continue pursuing a relationship with Charles—at least not until they were sure. If his family wound up not joining the church, she’d be an emotional mess. As it was, she liked him enough to know she’d miss him if she didn’t see him again. On the other hand, if his family eventually became accepted members, she was still young and she had plenty of time to court Charles—that is, if he wanted to.
“Well?” Papa asked, staring at her. “What do you think about it?”
She blinked. “Sorry, Papa. I wasn’t listening.”
He leaned back in his chair, folded his arms, and feigned anger. “Not listening? What kind of daughter doesn’t listen?” Before she could respond, he burst out laughing. “Thinking about the young man again? I understand.” He reached for Mother’s hand. “We were young once.”
Ruthie needed to set her parents straight. “I like Charles, but I’ve decided I need to back off … at least for now. There is no point in continuing to see him if I’m not sure he’ll even stay.”
Papa gave her an odd glance. “Have you prayed about this?”
She couldn’t lie, so she shook her head. “No, Papa, but I don’t think the Lord wants me taking chances like this.”
“Ruthie, the Lord wants you to turn to Him for everything, including matters of the heart, which doesn’t mean you can’t take chances. If you care about Charles as much as I think you do, you should turn to God and ask for guidance. Don’t try to make any decisions without Him.”
Papa was right, but Ruthie didn’t know where to start with a prayer about her relationship—particularly since she wasn’t certain how Charles felt about her. She didn’t have enough experience with men to even begin figuring them out.
“That is what your Mother and I will pray for, Ruthie. And I want you to remember to do the same.”
After dinner all three of them cleared the dishes. Mother filled the sink with water, and Papa went out to the backyard to check on his tomatoes that had been attacked by aphids.
“Ruthie, do you mind bringing me the saltshaker?” Mother asked. “The humidity has the holes blocked, and I need to clear them out.”
They worked in silence as they finished cleaning the kitchen. Once they were finished, Ruthie went out the front door and watched the sun set.
A few minutes after the sun went down, Papa joined her on the porch. “Rosemary seems like a nice girl. Do you think she can handle the store?”
“She caught on to the paperwork fairly quickly, but she seems timid around the customers,” Ruthie replied.
Pop looked down at Ruthie. “You were that girl once, remember?”
She smiled. “I still am.”
“And you do just fine with the customers, so I suspect she will, too.”
He had an excellent point, and she nodded. “True.”
“My concern is how motivated she is to make the effort.”
“I’ll try to find out,” Ruthie offered. “She said she likes it here.”
“That’s a good start. Why don’t you get your office work done early and spend more time with her on the sales floor tomorrow?”
The next morning Charles decided to leave the house early and stop by the Kauffmans’ souvenir shop before going to the campus. He was surprised to see another woman standing behind the counter. As he approached, he thought he saw fear in her eyes. His heart sank as he assumed she must be one of the people from the church he hadn’t met yet.
“M–may I help you?” she asked as he got closer.
“Is Ruthie around?”
“Um … she stepped out for just a few minutes. Would you like me
to give her a message?”
“Do you think she’ll be back in the next five minutes or so?”
She nodded. “I think so.”
“Good, then I’ll wait.”
As Charles walked around and perused the aisles, he couldn’t help but smile at some of the merchandise. The store offered everything from scented, orange-shaped erasers to chocolate alligators. He imagined tourists buying some of those items and wondering what to do with them once they got home.
“Charles?”
The sound of Ruthie’s voice from behind caught his attention. He turned and found himself face-to-face with Ruthie, and his breath caught in his throat. The sweet expression on her face had captured his heart, and he suspected he’d never be able to erase the image of her soulful eyes looking at him at this moment.
“Hi, Ruthie. I just wanted to stop by and see you for a few minutes before I go to class.”
“Did you need something?” she asked as she took a step back.
Charles looked around, trying to think of something to say. His gaze settled on the other woman in the store. “Who is she?”
“Oh, that’s Rosemary. Papa hired her to help out, and I’m training her.”
“I don’t think I’ve met her,” Charles said. “Does she go to our—I mean, your church?”
Ruthie studied him for a second before replying. “She just moved here, but I think she will go to our church.”
Charles was at a loss for words. In the past, he would have resorted to putting on a clown act, but he didn’t want to do that with Ruthie. She’d see right through him.
He lifted his arm and glanced at his watch. “Well, I better get going. I have to catch the next bus to make it to class on time.”
Chapter 8
After Charles left, Ruthie turned and walked toward Rosemary. “Did you have any problems while I was gone?”
“Neh,” Rosemary said. “That man you were just talking to was the only person who came in.”
Ruthie cleared her throat. “Tuesdays are generally slow. Papa should be here shortly. Once he arrives, we can place the order. I’ll let you do it.”