by Sarah Price
Hannah nodded and sniffled at the same time.
“And I promise,” Emma added solemnly, reaching up to dry the tear that clung to the corner of her eye, “I will not meddle anymore.”
Both young women laughed at that statement and once again embraced in an affectionate, sisterly hug.
Despite the emotions of the meeting, Emma felt an enormous weight lift from her shoulders. She said a silent prayer, thanking God for granting her a second chance to prove what a right gut friend she was. Now she would rely on Him to help her refrain from meddling when her opinions and guidance were neither required nor needed.
Chapter Ten
THE SKY WAS overcast, gray clouds hovering on the horizon and creating a gloomy feeling about the day. There was a chill in the air, carrying a hint of the impending change of seasons. Clearly the long hot days of summer were over, even if some days still were warm and sunny. Today, however, was not one of those. While the official start of autumn was still a few days away, Emma and Hannah both wore thick black sweaters over their dresses along with thin black knee socks with their shoes, an uncomfortable feeling after so many months of going everywhere barefoot. With yesterday’s drama behind them, they were on their way to attend their weekly visit with the widows.
Their visits with Mary Yoder and Katie Miller were very similar to the previous week: short visits with small talk and simple treats of cookies and tea that Emma had packed in a basket for the women. Both of the older women shared whatever letters they had received earlier in the week from friends and family, both near and afar. After twenty minutes or so Emma would excuse herself to wash and dry the dishes, taking care to put everything back exactly the way she had found it so as not to burden either Mary or Katie with having extra chores after their visitors left.
It was at their third stop, Sarah Esh’s house, that they encountered the first of two surprises for the day.
Sarah was a frail woman who used a walker to get around her small house. But she always greeted her visitors with a wide smile and a cheery invitation to come in and visit, sharing the rocking chairs in her sitting room. With great apprehension Emma knocked at the door, with a quick glance at Hannah to give her support to get through the visit. Both of them wondered if Paul would show up today to visit her. Neither one had talked further about what had happened with Paul, but they were nervous at the thought of running into him for the first time since he had proposed to Emma.
“Wilkum!”
Emma smiled as the door was opened and Sarah’s face peered out, a big bright smile lighting up her face. “Gut mariye, Sarah! We’ve come to sit a spell, if that’s all right with you.”
“Come in, come in,” she insisted, showing a sign of surprise as if this was not a weekly routine and she had not seen them in months, then stepping back from the door so that Emma and Hannah could enter. “How right gut of you to come visit!”
“Now, Sarah,” Emma chided gently. “I wouldn’t miss our weekly visit for anything!” Her words caused Sarah’s smile to broaden even wider. “I brought along some sugar cookies that I made just this morning!” She lifted her arm, indicating the basket that she held. “And fresh meadow tea, too.”
Without waiting for an invitation, Emma quickly began to move toward the kitchen. She knew where everything was kept and quickly had a tray prepared with paper napkins, cups, glass jar of tea, and the covered plate of cookies. “Shall we go sit, then?” She moved over toward the sitting area, waiting for Sarah to sit in her burgundy-colored recliner. “This will probably be the last tea of the season, I reckon,” she sighed, bending down for Sarah to serve herself.
“Concentrate!” Sarah announced forcefully as she accepted a glass from the tray that Emma held before her. The single word startled Emma, and for just a moment she wasn’t certain what Sarah had meant. “You must make concentrate tea syrup in order to have some in the winter months.”
Laughing, Emma set the tray on the oval coffee table and sat down in her assigned rocking chair. The glass of cool tea in her hands, she stared into it for a moment as if pondering over Sarah’s words. “I thought you meant I needed to concentrate better!” Both Sarah and Hannah joined her in laughing at Emma’s comment. Once everyone was situated and enjoying their refreshments, Emma finally responded to Sarah’s suggestion. “Anna and I made that tea syrup one year. I thought that it doesn’t keep as well and spoils my enjoyment of the tea.”
Sarah shook her head and clucked her tongue several times, before lifting her cup to her lips to taste the tea. “Well done, Emma,” she said approvingly. “Just the right blend of sugar and mint.”
“Danke,” Emma said. “Anna taught me vell.”
A moment of silence fell over the three. Emma watched as Sarah reached for a cookie, taking a healthy bite as small crumbs scattered down the front of her navy blue dress. She was about to say something when Sarah carelessly wiped them onto the floor.
Clearing her throat, Hannah set down her cup and broke the silence. “I found a powdered formula at the Sharp Shopper!” She smiled eagerly at Emma. “Mayhaps we could try that for the colder months?”
“Powdered? Oh, help!” Slapping her hand against her leg, Emma sank back into the rocking chair and shook her head in wonder. “Whatever would Daed have to say about that?”
Both Sarah and Hannah laughed, knowing full well that Henry Weaver would find something to say about such an unnatural version of a truly delicious, if not medicinal, potent drink. Emma was pleased with Hannah’s response. Contrary to her fears, Hannah had seemed to respond to the dreadful news of the previous day with a strong continence. She was proud of her dear friend for being so strong in the face of such a devastating loss.
After tasting the tea, Sarah set the glass on the small side table next to her chair. “You come to visit me every week and bring me news,” she said, a mischievous smile on her face. “Today I have news for both of you!”
Emma looked amused and raised an eyebrow, glancing at Hannah, who also appeared delighted in this unusually sassy side of Sarah Esh. “News? Oh my!” She winked at Hannah. “Do tell us! I can hardly wait!”
The older woman’s eyes sparkled and she leaned forward, her elbows on her knees as she lowered her voice, sharing her secret. “I don’t reckon you have both heard about my nephew Paul, ja?”
At the mention of Paul, the very man who had caused such angst for the two of them, Emma stiffened and glanced at Hannah. Her cheeks suddenly looked pale but she maintained her composure as if bracing herself for the worst news. Emma certainly hoped that he hadn’t told anyone about what had transpired between them. Even if he omitted her name and confided in his family, such news would be devastating to Hannah.
“Nee, Sarah,” Emma responded, choosing her words carefully and speaking slowly. “I can’t say that I have heard any news of Paul of late.”
Hannah merely shook her head.
Receiving the response that she wanted, Sarah looked delighted as she finally shared her gossip. “He went off to Ohio, he did! Just Monday last. Wanted to visit with a bishop out there, learn more about their g’may and different practices.” She smiled, unable to hide her pride in her nephew. “You mark my words. That young man will be chosen by the lot one day. Not a finer, more godly man has ever graced our church district.”
With a sigh of relief and ignoring the blatant pride in Sarah’s words, Emma pressed forward. “Monday after communion service? Was that an expected trip then?”
“Nee, not at all. His daed said that Paul felt the calling from God to take such a spontaneous trip. Imagine that!” Another smile. “God touched him, that boy.”
Hardly likely, Emma thought, still bitter at what she considered a clear deception on the part of Sarah’s ever-so-godly nephew. While Emma would never share the intimate details of that conversation with anyone, she did suspect that her rebuff had caught him off guard, and he had run to Ohio to hide his shame. If her entire opinion of Paul Esh had changed dramatically after that dreadful bu
ggy ride home, her respect for him had now vanished at this unexpected announcement.
“And I wouldn’t be too surprised if he returns with a bann to be announced too!” Sarah giggled in delight.
Choking on her tea, Emma set down her glass on the table and reached for a paper napkin to wipe at her mouth. Her eyes flickered to meet Hannah’s, and she wasn’t surprised to see that her friend was blinking rapidly as if fighting tears. Gone was that facade of strength she had been portraying. And, as startled as Hannah was, Emma was equally as shocked. Had he not just proposed to her five days prior?
“Banns?” Emma managed to ask with a shaky voice.
Sarah nodded her head emphatically. “That’s what I said.”
“Oh, I heard you,” Emma retorted. “I just didn’t believe what I heard.”
Sarah laughed at Emma’s reaction.
“That would be most sudden, wouldn’t it?” Emma asked.
What she really wanted to ask was how on earth Paul Esh could propose to her on one day, leave town the next, and then have rumors spreading that he would return from Ohio with a fraa! It was unthinkable. While Emma knew that she could never voice her opinion on the matter, she also knew that tongues would wag along the Amish grapevine. The speculation on such a situation had the potential to ruin any chance of Paul Esh ever being nominated to serve the church.
Waving her wrinkled hand at Emma, Sarah dismissed the question and shook her head. “You young people put too much emphasis on this courtship business. In my day . . . ” she began, a wistful look in her eyes as she fell back into her memory, a favorite place for many of the widows that Emma visited, it seemed. “Courtship was more direct. Select the partner on values and morals. God provides the rest over the years. Is it not better to marry a righteous and God-fearing man than to seek romance? What you call ‘romance’ and ‘love’ only comes with time, girls. Not during a few buggy rides. Mark my words on that.” She pursed her lips together. “Is it any wonder that so many of you young folk are getting married later and later in life, and some not at all. Too particular you are, I’ll say!”
Hannah quickly stood up and excused herself, explaining that she needed to use the restroom. Emma’s eyes trailed after her, hoping and praying that the pain of her heartbreak was not more than her friend could bear.
But that was not to be the only surprise of the day.
In silence Hannah and Emma walked to their final destination: the home of Hetty and Old Widow Blank. Sarah’s announcement had seemed to take the wind out of their sails, and neither one knew what to say to the other.
“Why, Emma Weaver! How gut of you to come!” The door opened before she even had a chance to knock. Hetty grinned and reached for Emma’s arm, pulling her into the kitchen. “What a surprise we have for you! I just know that you’ll be as excited as we are!” She turned to her aging mother. “Maem! Won’t Emma be just thrilled with our surprise?”
The elderly woman leaned forward and cupped her ear. “Eh?”
Hetty repeated herself, louder this time. “Our surprise! Won’t Emma be excited?” But it was clear that her mother still could not hear her and she responded with a disgruntled shrug of her shoulders and looked away.
“Let me guess,” Emma said sweetly as she set her basket on the table and began to unload the goodies that she had brought with her for the two women. “Another letter from your dear niece, Jane?”
It was part of their routine. Every Thursday when she visited, Emma was subjected to listening to Hetty read and sometimes reread letters from Jane. And every week Emma smiled politely, commenting on one or two lines from the missive, knowing that to talk about Jane gave Hetty such great joy, despite the fact that Emma found most of Jane’s letters one thing and one thing only: dull.
“A letter!” Hetty giggled and clapped her hands in delight, more childlike in her response than Emma found pleasing. “A letter, Maem. Emma asked if we received a letter!” Clearly Hetty was delighted with whatever her surprise was, a surprise that Emma was beginning to dislike before she even knew what it was. “Nee, nee, Emma. It’s better than a letter!”
“Well do tell, Hetty,” Emma coaxed, starting to feel irritated, as she was still unhappily digesting Sarah Esh’s news. “Surprises are meant to be shared at some point, otherwise there is no point in having them, is there?”
Grabbing Emma’s arm, Hetty led her through the kitchen and into the small sitting room that was down a narrow hallway. “Come see for yourself what surprise we have for you. And, oh, I just know you will be delighted, delighted, delighted!” She clucked her tongue happily.
No sooner had they walked through the doorway and into the sitting room than Emma’s eyes fell upon a young woman. She sat straight and proper in the ladder back chair with her legs crossed at the ankle and tucked under her skirt. She was darker skinned, clearly from having worked outside in the fields or gardens. Yet she was fresh and pretty, with bright brown eyes that sparkled and plump lips that smiled ever so slightly. There was something familiar about the woman, but Emma knew that she had never seen her before this day.
“I don’t believe we have met,” Emma said politely, stepping forward with an outstretched hand to greet the pretty young woman. “I’m Emma Weaver.”
The woman smiled, again just a hint of an upturning of her lips. “We have met, but it has been many years,” the woman said, her voice soft and gentle with just the faint touch of a different accent.
And at that moment Emma knew.
“Jane?”
Hetty giggled and clapped her hands. “I knew you’d recognize her! I knew you’d know Jane, even after all of these years!” She turned to call out to her mother. “Didn’t I tell you, Maem?” She didn’t wait for an answer, for her maem didn’t even appear to be listening, but turned back to Emma. “I told her! I said that if anyone would recognize our dear Jane, it would be our Emma! Oh, for sure and certain!”
If she felt humiliated and dismayed at having heard that Paul Esh’s declarations of admiration for her had already been brushed away by taking an unplanned trip to Ohio in search of a substitute fraa, Emma’s heart jumped further in her throat at the realization that the beloved Jane, the one with a perpetual aura of goodness, grace, and perfection, the one that Hetty constantly talked about, was finally sitting before her, grown up and proper, with an air of godliness about her that Emma found overly powerful. This was Jane? Twelve years ago she had left a mere child, and now she returned as a woman who clearly had just as much confidence as she did beauty.
Masking her surprise, Emma was quick to take ahold of Jane’s hands and give them a warm squeeze. “This is such a gut surprise, indeed!” she managed to say, doing her best to sound genuinely pleased. It wasn’t easy and she worried that her voice sounded strained. “Your aendi has been so kind as to share your letters with us each week. Why, I feel as though we are the best of friends already!”
Jane smiled in response but did not speak.
“From the last letter, there wasn’t any mention that you were planning a trip to Lititz!” Emma forced her own smile onto her face, a bit puzzled by the reserved nature of the woman before her. While they were the exact same age, Jane seemed years older and much more formal in her demeanor. Emma wondered whether or not that was a trait of the g’may in Ohio where Jane had been raised. “Had you planned this visit for long, then?”
“A van was coming from Ohio and I wanted to surprise my aendi and grossmammi,” she explained. It was a simple explanation that did not directly answer Emma’s question.
Emma glanced at Hetty, observing the joyous delight on the older woman’s face. Indeed, she couldn’t remember a time when Hetty looked so happy. “Well, I do think you have achieved just that!”
After introducing Jane to Hannah, Hetty encouraged the three young women to sit down and visit. For a few awkward moments, they sat in the small sitting room, uncertain of what to say. Hetty took the liberty of telling the story of Jane’s arrival, how she had simply appeare
d at the door, and oh, wasn’t this reunion delightful? Then, in a burst of nervous energy, Hetty began to fuss over Jane, worrying that she was hungry. When Jane did not immediately reply, Hetty quickly excused herself, stating that she needed to fetch a tray of freshly baked cookies and lemonade from the kitchen.
Eager to leave the room, for she needed a moment to collect her thoughts from this second surprise, Emma had offered to assist her in the kitchen, but Hetty flatly refused any help. It was clear that Hetty was in her glory and wanted nothing more than to take care of Jane and their two visitors. It was also clear that today would not be a short visit.
Hetty had no sooner left the room when an awkward silence fell over the three young women. The only noise came from the clock hanging on the wall, the gentle ticking sounding loud as it echoed in the room. Emma quickly realized that any conversation would depend on her taking the initiative. Hannah was too shy and Jane, apparently, was overly quiet.
“It has been so long since you left Lancaster for Ohio,” Emma began, searching for something to say . . . anything! “I reckon you don’t remember much, but, of what you do, does it seem much different?”
“Different and the same,” Jane responded vaguely, a hint of a polite smile on her lips. “But delightful, nonetheless.”
Emma fought the urge to frown, not understanding the response that Jane had provided. Just as before, when she responded to questions, she provided no real answers. In fact, her responses made it impossible to converse, something that did not sit well with Emma.
Determined to probe further, Emma asked, “And when, exactly, did you arrive?”
“Just yesterday evening,” Jane responded.
Hetty reentered the room, the tray in her hands as she padded across the floor to set it down on the table by the sofa. “You’ll never believe this, Emma.” Hetty gave a delighted laugh, pausing to push her glasses back from the tip of her nose. “Guess who she drove all the way from Ohio to Lititz with?”
Another surprise? Emma thought that she surely could not stand another one. “Why, I’m sure I couldn’t do any such thing!” she managed to say. “Do share!”