Romance In Amish Country Series Boxed Set: 1-3 Naomi's Story; Miriam's Story; Ruth's Story

by Melanie Schmidt

  “And why do your sons not live here?”

  “When Abram first married his Esther, they lived here until another house and barn could be built for them on the other end of our farm. Abram wanted to begin raising dairy cattle, and our barns were neither large enough nor well-situated for a dairy. Now, Abram and the Miller Dairy are doing very well.”

  “And your younger son?” Hostetler asked.

  Ezra smiled. “Isaac was always for making things. He worked hard on the farm, as was right, but his heart was never in farming. He apprenticed himself to the furniture maker, Aaron Yoder, over in Paradise and has built a successful business to support his family.”

  Hostetler grunted, and Naomi couldn’t help but be satisfied to hear his obvious disapproval of her family. Her father certainly could not be pleased to be called upon to defend their family’s ways, which meant marks against Hostetler—and any plans of marriage, she hoped.

  Hostetler wasn’t quite finished, though, and he looked hard at Naomi before turning to address Ezra. “And this little shop in town? That will have to close or be sold when Naomi marries, yes?”

  Ezra glanced at Ruth before he answered, words calm and measured. “That remains to be seen, Herr Hostetler . That would be a matter for Naomi and her husband to decide, but I will tell you that the shop has begun to provide a substantial supplement for our household income. In fact, Naomi has considered finding another local business to invest in – to help another member of our community to start a successful business of their own.”

  Joseph looked stunned. He pursed his lips and returned to shoveling his lunch into his mouth without another word.

  Naomi met Hannah’s narrow stare from across the table and had to suppress a smile. Like father, like daughter , she thought, and a glance at Ezra showed he hadn’t missed the girls’ exchange. Good! Let the Hostetlers think what they will of us, as long as Daed changes his mind about pursuing a match! Naomi prayed Herr Hostetler did not consider either shoofly pie or snitz pie a particular favorite, though she could honestly say that Ruth had made them both on this occasion. Naomi was careful to avoid making eye contact with Ruth as she rose to clear the dishes—lest they both break into giggles— and Naomi felt a measure of hope as conversation between the two men continued with little indication that the two men were warming toward one another. Herr Hostetler seemed intent on finding fault with the Millers and the way they lived, and Ezra patiently quoted the Ordnung and recent decisions by local leaders to argue they were still living a plain life.

  The awkward meal finally ended as Herr Hostetler pushed back his plate—after a very large piece of each pie—signaling an end to their visit. The Hostetlers stiffly thanked Ruth and Naomi for the delicious meal, and Ezra escorted their guests out to their waiting gray buggy. Both Ruth and Naomi sighed in relief, glad to have the house back to themselves.

  “What do you think, Aenti ?” Naomi asked in a whisper as they politely waved from the doorway.

  “Shhh. Wait and see, child.”

  After the Hostettler settled themselves and their buggy turned down the drive, Ruth and Naomi ducked back into the house, intent upon appearing busy with cleaning up the dinner dishes before Ezra returned. They heard his heavy footsteps on the porch, then heading down the hall as he returned to his room. A few minutes later he reappeared in his work clothes, prepared to head back outside for his afternoon chores.

  He paused in front of the refrigerator when it cycled on and grunted softly. “An extravagance? Huh!”

  Naomi couldn’t suppress a giggle, and her father turned on her with an attempt at a stern look, but she easily spotted the twinkle in his eyes and grinned. Shaking his head, Ezra crossed to her and kissed her brow lightly.

  “Hostetler said he has decided he would prefer to marry a more mature woman, perhaps a widow,” Ezra said. “He said he wants a woman who will put the needs of him and his children ahead of the demands of a silly store. I told him that was just as well as you would really prefer a younger man. I also might have mentioned that even Ruth would prefer a husband with a refrigerator.”

  “You did not really say that, Brother!” Ruth exclaimed, her eyes dancing.

  “I did. I am uncertain as to whether it was Joseph or Hannah who looked more relieved.”

  He turned to leave, and once the door closed behind him, Naomi and Ruth fell into each others’ arms, laughing.

  “Oh, Daed… ” Naomi finally managed.

  “Your father never ceases to surprise me,” Ruth laughed, wiping at the tears in her eyes.

  “Let us bake him another snitz pie for supper,” Naomi suggested. “The Hostetlers ate most of this one.”

  “And we will fix him some of his favorite fried chicken and potato salad, too,” Ruth agreed enthusiastically. “Bless the man! I knew he would understand.”

  3

  The next morning, Naomi walked into the Amish market in Paradise with a spring in her step. She was relieved that since the dinner with the Hostetlers, her father had clearly backed off from his goal of finding his youngest daughter a husband. It was as though, having chosen so poorly the first time, he had decided that marriage was a thing best left in the hands of the women. As Naomi carefully set her eggs out for sale and arranged the applesauce cakes and rolls, she decided that God had given her a gift – the chance to choose for herself. Yes, she wanted to marry and start a family, but not a one of the young men who came to mind seemed a good fit. She supposed that she would have to be content to wait, certain God would find her the perfect match when the time came.

  “Good morning, Naomi!”

  She turned to see her friend, the owner of the neighboring booth in the market, waving to her. Naomi answered. “Good morning, Mrs. Lapp!”

  “And how are you this fine day? We missed you yesterday.”

  “I am well, thank you. Happy to be back to work. I enjoyed the day with my Aenti Ruth, but I am glad to make the most of these spring shoppers. And how are you?”

  “Very well, thank you. We had a whole train load of tourists in yesterday. So many that I could hardly keep up. It was a shame for you to miss them. How did your dinner go? Are you to be married soon?”

  “I am thankful that my father realized that Joseph Hostetler and I are not a good match. All in all, I thought the dinner was a successful one, though the result was not exactly what my father wanted. At least I will not miss another day of business.”

  Naomi busied herself arranging the spring produce that she had for sale, and as she made trips back outside to the wagon she’d driven to work, she reflected on the pleasure she took raising each piece of produce all on her own. She had seen the opportunity for selling organic produce, and she knew that some customers would be willing to pay more for it than for produce grown with chemicals. What Naomi hadn’t known was how satisfying it was to grow her own wares. She sometimes reminded herself of the profit and of the satisfaction when she stood out in the July sun, picking beetles off her raspberry bushes. Happily lost in her work, Naomi didn’t even notice that early customers had started to arrive at the market, and she was startled to hear an angry voice right behind her.

  “Stay away from our father!”

  Naomi spun around, shocked at the venom that laced the voice of Hannah Hostetler. “What? What are you talking about?” Naomi saw Sarah just behind her sister’s shoulder, glaring and looking for all the world like an angry little troll.

  “We know you want him,” Hannah said sharply, while Sarah nodded behind her.

  Naomi suppressed a sigh. “I do not want your father, Hannah.” And I certainly do not want you, she just managed not to add.

  “Many mature women want our father,” Sarah said, imitating her sister’s haughty manner.

  Naomi recalled that Sarah had not been so harsh when she was younger, but since the death of their mother, Hannah’s influence seemed to be growing stronger. Naomi decided that there was nothing to be gained by arguing with the Hostetler girls. She continued writing pri
ces on little slates and leaning them against the assorted pies she offered for sale.

  “I am certain there are women who want to marry your father, but I am not one of them. He and I are not well suited,” Naomi replied, attempting to be polite while hoping that the girls would leave.

  “Our father can have his pick,” Hannah said, “so don’t think just because you can bake a shoofly pie and grow some wormy strawberries that he will be interested in having you for his wife.”

  “I could not conceive of such a thing,” Naomi muttered.

  “There are other women who can bake a pie much better than yours,” Sarah helpfully added, looking with disdain at the pies Naomi had so carefully baked and arranged.

  “Oh, for Heaven’s sake,” Naomi sputtered. “For the last time, Hannah and Sarah, I am not the least bit interested in…”

  “Naomi!”

  She turned to see Ruth rushing into the market. Naomi felt instant relief, until she saw Ruth’s face.

  “What is wrong?” she asked sharply, feeling her stomach fall through the floor. “ Daed ?”

  Ruth shook her head mutely and had to swallow hard before she could speak.

  “We must go to Miriam,” Ruth said.

  “Miriam! Has something happened to Miriam? One of the children?”

  Ruth shook her head again. “It is Jacob,” Ruth said, her voice breaking. “He has fallen from the roof of a barn.”

  “Dear God,” Naomi cried. “Is he…?”

  Ruth put her hand on her niece’s arm. “We do not know, yet, but we need to go there.”

  Naomi took just a few precious minutes to beg Mrs. Lapp to send her daughter-in-law to tend Naomi’s booth, thanking her friend before the tears could start to spill from her eyes. Satisfied that her little business would carry on, Naomi followed Ruth outside.

  “How did you get here?” she asked her aunt, looking around and not seeing one of the family’s buggies.

  “Your father dropped me off on his way to Miriam’s. He knew that you and I would follow close behind.”

  It was slow going through the village—tourists were everywhere and traffic was heavy—but once they reached the edge of town, Naomi brought their horse to a near-gallop. She’d never driven quite so fast, and she knew that it was a little risky, but she could think of nothing but the desperate need to be at her sister’s side on such an awful day. She worried about what they would find at the Fisher farm.

  The farmyard was filled with buggies and wagons when they arrived. Handing the reins to Miriam’s brother-in-law, Caleb, Naomi and Ruth jumped down from the buggy and rushed inside the house. As soon as they crossed the threshold, Naomi knew that Jacob, her sister’s husband was dead.

  Miriam clung to her mother-in-law, Rachel, while the older woman sobbed, mourning the loss of her eldest son. Caleb’s wife, Judith looked on, a compassionate hand on Miriam’s shoulder as Rachel’s other daughters-in-law busied themselves preparing some food for the visitors they knew were sure to come. When Miriam looked up to meet Naomi’s eyes, Naomi was certain her sister was only just managing to hold herself together for the sake of her mother-in-law.

  “Here is Miriam’s family, now, Mammi,” Judith whispered gently, taking Miriam’s place supporting Rachel.

  Miriam softly kissed Rachel’s head and stood to embrace Naomi. As they clung fast to one another, Miriam let the tears flow freely. Though ten years separated the sisters, they had always been close, and Naomi suspected Miriam had just been waiting for her before allowing herself to dissolve into tears. Ruth wrapped her arms around them both, uniting the three Miller women as she had so many times in the past.

  “Let us sit down,” Ruth finally murmured, leading Miriam and Naomi to a bench against a wall. Placing Miriam between them, Ruth and Naomi kept their arms around the broken woman who cried quietly.

  “Do you know what happened, yet?” Ruth asked, as Miriam’s tears subsided.

  “Jacob and his brothers were all helping Benjamin repair the roof of his barn—the part that was damaged during that thunderstorm earlier this week?”

  Ruth nodded, continuing to rub the younger woman’s back with a light and comforting caress.

  Miriam took a deep breath. “Jacob was coming down the ladder to help Seth fetch drinking water when one rung on the ladder snapped…” Miriam’s voice broke, and Naomi squeezed her shoulder hard while Miriam got her emotions under control enough to be able to continue. “Caleb said there was nothing anyone could do,” she managed after another moment. “Jacob just tumbled to the ground and landed on his head.”

  Miriam began to cry again and clung to Ruth. Naomi and Ruth looked at one another over Miriam’s head while their own tears fell unnoticed.

  They sat that way for a long time until Miriam stirred once more and sat up straighter.

  “Where is Jacob now?” Ruth asked softly.

  “His brothers took him to Mr. Fletcher.”

  Mr. Fletcher, the Paradise funeral director, wasn’t Amish, but he knew the Lancaster County Amish customs and would prepare Jacob’s body in the traditional way. It would be embalmed, though no make-up or cosmetics would be used. The next day, Jacob’s father and brothers would go to the funeral home to dress him all in white and place him in the traditional six-sided coffin before bringing him back to the family home. That evening, the night before the funeral, the entire community would gather to say goodbye. It would be an agonizing three days for Miriam and the rest of the family, but they would cope, knowing Jacob had gone to a better place.

  “Have the children been told?” Ruth asked.

  Miriam shook her head and ran her hands over her hair in an unconscious move to tame the unruly curls forever escaping from her matronly bun. “I do not know how to tell them,” she said, her voice breaking once more.

  “We will tell them together, child,” Ruth said, giving Miriam’s shoulder a squeeze.

  Naomi knew that Ruth remembered the day that she had to tell the Miller children that Leah was gone. Naomi had been an infant but her brothers and sister had been given the same terrible news that Miriam’s daughters and son had in store for them. It broke Naomi’s heart to think of her sweet nieces and nephew having to learn that they’d just lost their father.

  Miriam and Ruth rose, and although Naomi had wondered if she should accompany them, Miriam kept a tight hold on Naomi’s hand and didn’t give her sister a choice. Miriam pulled Naomi with them as they headed for the girls’ bedroom. Dreading the conversation ahead of them, Naomi clung to her sister’s hand, praying for God’s grace, wisdom, and strength.

  4

  The hum of voices remained low and steady as Naomi wandered through the Fishers’ home. Shem and Rachel had raised their seven sons in the home and still found room for Shem’s parents, but tonight, the big house felt cramped, full of people from all over the valley who had come to pay their respects to Jacob and offer their comfort to his family. Shem or one of his sons would great each new arrival at the door and ask them if they would like to see the body. Visitors who wished to see Jacob one last time were shown to the back bedroom where the coffin had been laid. One end of the lid was open, and the family member would pull back the white cloth so each visitor could look at Jacob’s face. Jacob looked peaceful to Naomi, and she prayed that had been a comfort to Miriam. Naomi realized that Jacob didn’t look much like himself, as his peaceful face lacked the easy smile that Jacob always wore in life.

  Jacob would be buried in the local Amish cemetery in the morning, where a simple stone marked with his name, birth date, death date and age in years, months and days would be erected. Naomi’s brother, Abram, had helped Jacob’s brothers dig his grave that morning. Naomi hated to think about that black hole waiting for her brother-in law, a man who had loved her sister deeply and had treated his young sister-in-law with respect, humor, and love

  Feeling claustrophobic among all of the visitors that crowded the house, and feeling tears threaten yet again, Naomi checked on Miriam and slip
ped out the kitchen door for some fresh air. Miriam was surrounded by the love and support from friends and family, and Naomi figured that she could afford a few minutes to herself.. She breathed deep, relishing the sweet night air as she attempted to clear her head. When yet another buggy pulled up the drive, she descended the porch steps and circled around to the back of the house. The moon, nearly full, lit her way clearly.

  A ghostly white shadow moved toward her, and she stopped to wait for the grizzled black-and-white dog to approach. When he leaned against her legs, Naomi crouched down to lay her cheek on his head. Dutch had been Jacob’s constant companion since he was a teenager until just recently, when the elderly animal had slowed down too much to keep up with his master in the fields. Naomi wrapped her arms around the big dog and dampened his coat with her tears.

  “I know you miss him already, Dutch,” she whispered. “We all do.”

  Dutch licked the tears from her face and waited patiently for her to compose herself.

  A sudden noise from the direction of the barn brought both their heads up.

  “What is it, boy?” Naomi whispered.

  The shaggy dog whined softly and moved off toward the barn, only to pull up and look back over his shoulder as though waiting for her to follow.

  “All right. I am coming.”

  Naomi rested her hand on the big dog’s head as they made their way around the barn, and just as they rounded the corner, she heard a voice groan in agony.

  “Why Jacob, Lord?” the man cried. “If you had to take one of us, it should have been me! I have no wife or children! I was the first down that ladder! Dear God, it should have been me!”

  Naomi heard a dull “thud” accompanied by the crack of splitting wood.

  As Naomi’s eyes slowly adjusted to the darkness of the barn’s shadow, she could just make out a man standing there, resting his head on the barn wall, his right hanging limply at his side.