by Linda Byler
Mandy and Jason were sound asleep, but they looked flushed, too.
“Are you too warm?” Lizzie asked.
“Yes!” whispered Emma, rolling her eyes in the driver’s direction. “Ask Mam to ask him to turn the heater down.”
“No, you do.”
“No, Emma. I don’t want to.”
So Emma leaned forward and tapped Mam’s shoulder. Mam looked back at the girls and asked what they wanted. Emma put up a hand and whispered softly to Mam. After that she sat back against the seat, waiting to see what Mam would do.
The driver launched into another extended story, so Mam didn’t say anything. She just smiled and nodded politely.
Lizzie could not take it one moment longer. She was getting a terrible headache, so she decided to open a window. She looked at the handle on the door for a long time, hoping if she turned it, she would not open the door. Slowly she reached over and gave the handle with a little knob on the end a firm yank. Cool air rushed in as the window was lowered a few inches. Emma looked alarmed when she realized what Lizzie had done, but before Lizzie had a chance to open her mouth, the driver dipped his head to look at them in his rearview mirror and yelled, “You too warm?”
“Yes,” Emma said clearly.
“Ya shoulda said something. Better close the window. The little boy will get sick. Close it. There you go! Now, I’ll turn the heat down and we’ll all be more comfortable. That better?” he shouted, dipping his head sideways to look at them in his mirror again.
“Yes,” Emma said again.
Lizzie didn’t say anything. She decided she did not like this driver—the fat, noisy man. How could he stand to have it so warm in the car if he was so fat? It just irked Lizzie. Besides, if you paid a driver, you should be allowed to open the window one tiny little crack. But she kept this all to herself, because Emma looked red-faced and unhappy. Lizzie figured if she’d try and talk about this driver, Emma would tell her it wasn’t nice. Besides, Mam always said drivers put up with a lot, waiting outside a store while the women went shopping.
Lizzie was very glad to see the mountains, because she knew it would not be long until they were at their new home. Just when she thought they must soon be there, the driver told Mam he needed to pull into this gas station for some gas, because it was the cheapest he’d seen in a long time.
As soon as he stopped the car, heaving himself out the door to go inside, Emma and Lizzie started complaining to Mam. She told them to be quiet; they were almost there.
“Hush,” she said, “you’ll wake Jason.”
When they pulled up the short driveway to the new basement house, Lizzie was in no mood to work hard unloading things and putting them away. For one thing, she was terribly hungry, and her head hurt and her apron pins were pricking her back.
The moving truck had not arrived yet; neither had the horse trailer with Red and Dolly. But the door of the basement home was flung open as soon as the car rolled to a stop, with Aunt Mary walking out across the porch in her short, rolling gait. She reached for Jason, who was just waking up, his curls stuck to his head because of the excessive heat.
“So you made it okay, Annie?” she asked, her little brown eyes beaming at Mam.
“Oh, yes!” Mam smiled at Aunt Mary. “We’re here!”
Lizzie could not stay unhappy very long, because Mam and Aunt Mary were so happy. Mam’s voice contained a giggle, even if she wasn’t laughing at all. When her brother Eli came walking down the road, Mam’s happy laugh just bubbled over in spite of herself. She was so glad to be with her relatives. They all went inside the house after Mam had paid the driver.
Aunt Mary had been cleaning, because a bucket of soapy water stood beside the kitchen cupboards. The whole house was completely empty. There was no washing machine in the kettle house, no beds or couches or chairs anywhere. The house echoed when Emma and Lizzie walked through it.
“No,” Aunt Mary was saying, “the children had to go to school. Edna wanted to help us today, and be with Emma and Lizzie, but I told her they can all stop here on their way home this afternoon.”
Emma and Lizzie looked at each other. They could hardly wait to see all their cousins. Ivan and Ray were older boys who were in sixth and seventh grade. Edna was exactly Emma and Lizzie’s age, and Danny was in first grade. They would be walking to school every day with their cousins.
They had never seen the school in Jefferson County, but on Monday morning they had to go. They had brought along their pencil boxes, notebooks, pens, erasers, and even the workbooks they did not finish. But for now, Lizzie did not need to think about going to school. Not till Monday.
Lizzie was so hungry, she told Mam she had to have something to eat or she just couldn’t make it anymore. Mam told her to be quiet, that Aunt Mary was providing dinner, and it was impolite to say too much now.
There was a funny-looking stove standing beside the kitchen cupboards. It had an iron top, but the burners were down a lot farther, and they looked like individual fat kerosene lamps with different wicks. The oven door was on top, with more of those burners underneath.
When Lizzie asked Mam what it was, she said it was a kerosene stove. Here in Jefferson County, they did not have propane gas for stoves and refrigerators. They had ice boxes with blocks of real ice in the top and kerosene stoves. That was the “ordnung”.
“Oh,” was all Lizzie said.
Then the moving truck came, followed shortly by the horse trailer. Lizzie forgot all about being hungry, because the truck backed slowly up the drive, with Dat jumping down the minute it rolled to a stop. Uncle Eli’s laugh rang out as he shook hands with Dat. Uncle Junior and Aunt Clara arrived to help unload. Uncle Andy and Aunt Ida also came. They lived about four miles away. There were three of Mam’s brothers living in Jefferson County, and they all had big families, with children older than Emma and Lizzie.
Aunt Ida carried a blue and white granite roaster, which she held with red potholders. Her face was wreathed in smiles as she set it on the kitchen counter and shook hands warmly with Mam. Aunt Clara was a sister to Mary, so those two looked very much alike, except one was heavier than the other. Aunt Ida was also small in stature, with small blue eyes and teeth that protruded in front, like Lizzie’s.
Uncle Andy had white hair that stuck out in every direction. Lizzie was afraid of him. He never said hello to them, and didn’t say much at all, especially not to children. But the main reason Lizzie was afraid of him was his piercing blue eyes. They never missed anything, so Lizzie imagined he was stricter than God or Moses. Even the men who threw Joseph in the pit in the Bible story didn’t look as fierce as Uncle Andy. Although Mam often assured the girls he was a nice brother, and actually quite friendly, Lizzie always stayed out of his way as much as she could.
Uncle Junior was thin and quiet. He had wavy brown hair, very blue eyes, and a soft smile. He smiled often, but did not say as much as Uncle Eli. All three of Mam’s brothers liked Dat, because Dat would talk and fuss, singing and whistling, making them laugh. He was much shorter than Mam’s brothers, but he had a quick wit, and they loved to be around Dat.
Delicious smells came from the funny stove, so Lizzie followed the aroma to the kitchen. The women had set up a line of food on the kitchen counter, and some folding chairs and cardboard boxes to set their plates on. Everyone stood, bowing their heads in silent prayer before filling their plates.
When Lizzie’s turn finally came, she was almost weak with hunger. Her stomach felt so flat she doubted if she was one bit chubby anymore. Certainly not fat, that was one thing sure. So she took a huge spoonful of cheesy noodles and ground beef, one of baked beans with large chunks of bacon and onion floating in a pungent red sauce, a thick slice of ham, and a crusty piece of whole wheat bread spread with raspberry jam. She balanced her plate carefully, setting it on a cardboard box, then returned for her drink and utensils. Emma joined her on one side and Mandy sat on the other.
They ate in silence, because they were too hungry to sa
y anything. Mandy didn’t like baked beans, so Lizzie ate hers, too. Mandy took little bites, and her food didn’t taste as good to her as it did to Emma and Lizzie. That was why she was so thin, they always said.
For dessert they had a big slice of pumpkin pie and something called ‘fluff.’ It had crushed graham crackers on the bottom and a kind of spongy pudding on the top, with whipped cream on top of that. Lizzie had never tasted anything like it, and she couldn’t figure out how anybody could make it. It wasn’t really Jell-O, and it wasn’t quite pudding, either. All she knew was that it was one of the most delicious things she had ever eaten, and she ate two quivering squares of it.
After their late dinner, Uncle Elis’ older children arrived. Esther and Lavina were too old to be going to school, and Jesse was already old enough to be going with the youth. Emma and Lizzie did not know them very well, so they hung back shyly when Mam greeted them.
Esther was tall, with wavy light brown hair, and Lavina was smaller, with very dark brown—almost black—hair. They talked excitedly, laughing and fussing over Jason, then came to say hello to Emma and Lizzie.
Everyone was put to work after the men started unloading furniture. The girls helped arrange their bedroom, while Mam helped the aunts in the kitchen. The men carried in the living room sofa, the oak bureau, Mam’s platform rocker with swan handles, and all the furniture that was dear and familiar. The more furniture the men carried in, the cozier the house became. Every time Lizzie stuck her head out the bedroom door, the living room looked more like home.
She was busy unpacking her school things and books. The bookcase bed went along the wall where the small window was way up high. Their dresser with the mirror went along the wall to the right, and the tall dresser with five drawers stood along the left wall. The thing that was most exciting about their new bedroom was the fact that Mam had told them their pink chenille bedspread was almost worn out. They had never had a new bedspread in their life, and they were even allowed to pick a new color from the catalog Mam had shown them. So now they could carefully take the new bedspread from its plastic wrapping and spread it on their bed.
Esther and Lavina helped them, exclaiming about the lovely soft yellow color. It had tiny little loops in the fabric, and a ruffle along the border. Lizzie was thrilled. It was the prettiest bedspread she had ever seen. Actually, she thought there were probably a lot of English girls, even, whose bedspreads were not as pretty as this one. She ran her hand along the silky fabric with the little loops in it and sighed happily. She really didn’t mind one little window way up high on the wall if they had this beautiful bedspread.
All her books were still in good shape when she opened the box. That was because she had packed them so carefully. Mam had told her to stuff crumpled newspaper in the corners, where there were empty spots, so the books would not slide around inside the box when someone lifted it. Lizzie had told Mam if she had more books she would not need to put crumpled newspaper in the box—she would just fill it up completely with books.
Mam had laughed and told her she would turn into a book soon. Then she seriously told Lizzie they would have to see if the nearest town in Jefferson County had a library, where you could go borrow books. Lizzie didn’t know if she liked the idea of borrowing books or not, because you just had to take them back, which wouldn’t seem fair. Her books were so precious to her; she read them over and over. Especially Heidi and Black Beauty. She held them against her chest for only a moment; she was so glad to see they had come all the way unharmed. Then she stacked them perfectly in order, one by one, with the tallest one first, on her bookcase bed.
chapter 24
Starting Anew
There was a commotion in the kitchen, and Lizzie heard Aunt Mary exclaim, “Oh, here are the school children!”
Lizzie hesitated for only a very short time before she walked slowly across the living room. Emma and Mandy followed, both eager to meet their cousins, although they felt a bit shy.
Edna threw down her lunchbox and came eagerly toward them. “Hello,” she said, her brown eyes twinkling merrily. She put a lot of emphasis on the last part of the word, so it sounded like, “Hel-lo.”
“Hi!” Lizzie said. Emma and Mandy greeted Edna warmly, while Lizzie watched the boys. Ray was smaller than Ivan, although he was the oldest. He had dark hair and his eyes were small and almost black. Lizzie thought he looked a lot like an Indian. Ivan was tall, with lighter brown hair and a lanky, wide-shouldered frame and a crooked grin. Danny was small and very thin, like Mandy, with light hazel eyes and very straight blond hair. His eyes were so light they were almost yellow. Lizzie almost giggled when he stuck out his hand with no trace of shyness, saying, “Hello, Lizzie!” in a very loud, clear voice. She liked him instantly.
“May I see your bedroom?” Edna was asking.
“Oh, yes, of course,” Emma answered, and they all crowded around the doorway to see their new bedspread. Edna was very happy, telling the girls she was excited to take them along to school on Monday morning.
“Who is your teacher?” Lizzie asked, her stomach doing flip-flops because the thought of meeting a new teacher was causing her to feel worried and nervous.
“Her name is Catherine Swarey,” Edna answered.
“Is she nice?”
“Oh, yes. Well, not always. She can be really strict sometimes, but that’s probably because the boys don’t always behave. Ray and Ivan don’t.”
“Our big boys back in Randolf County didn’t always behave, either,” Emma assured her.
“I suppose that’s just how big boys are when they go to school,” Edna said matter-of-factly. Edna was very wise, Lizzie thought, because she was a lot like Emma in some ways.
Lizzie was also relieved to notice that Edna was not thin. She had a dark, creamy complexion with no blemishes or freckles. In fact, she was very pretty, Lizzie thought. She wore a bigger covering than they were accustomed to, but it was white and ironed neatly. She looked a lot like a chickadee in her coloring book, because she was brown and black and white.
After they had a tour of the house, they went out to the barn to see Dolly. Lizzie was shocked to see poor Dolly wandering around aimlessly, seemingly at a loss to know where she was.
“Awww!” Lizzie’s heart swelled with pity as she hurriedly opened the gate to her stall. Dolly pricked up her ears and walked toward Lizzie.
“Come, Dolly. Come on, poor girl. What’s wrong?” Lizzie crooned, as she held her halter, stroking her ears and caressing her neck under her heavy mane. Lizzie loved to feel Dolly’s neck, because it was so warm and silky underneath the soft curtain of hair.
Little Danny watched her with wary eyes. “Hey, you better watch it. That pony could bite you real easy,” he said.
“Huh-uh!” Lizzie said, without thinking how arrogant it sounded. Edna watched her closely, her brown eyes still shining, as kind as always.
“Lizzie!” Emma said. “She could bite, although she never has.”
Emma was so polite, Lizzie thought. She knew, and Emma knew, that Dolly would never bite either of them, but Danny was afraid of Dolly, so it wasn’t nice to act too self-assured.
“Danny, come here. Dolly likes little children. Do you want a ride?” Lizzie asked.
“No!” Danny’s terrified shriek almost scared Lizzie.
“Well, okay, you don’t have to, Danny. That’s alright,” she assured him quickly.
“I don’t like ponies much,” Danny said, his voice as loud as ever.
Dolly’s soft, warm nose nuzzled Lizzie’s hand as she continued to stroke her.
“Do you have a pony?” she asked.
“Oh, yes. Her name is Sugar,” Edna said.
“Really?” Lizzie was thrilled.
“She’s brown and white, and so fat you’ll have to laugh when you see her. We can’t handle her very well. She tries to run away all the time. Ray or Ivan help us drive her if they have time. But she bucks children off and sometimes we can’t hold her if we hitch her to the
cart. She’s just a mess!” Edna said.
“Wow!” Lizzie exclaimed.
“Hey, it’s true. The last time she bucked me off, I hit my head on a rock when I landed. She ran off to the barn, and I was so angry!” Danny said, his big eyes rolling as he remembered the terror of that moment.
Lizzie pulled herself up as tall as possible and told Danny that Dat would have made him get back on and ride her again. They were not allowed to show fear of horses, or ponies, especially, because Dat told them that’s why you couldn’t control them. Dolly knew if Emma or Lizzie were afraid of her, and then it was harder to make her listen.
Danny watched Lizzie as she talked, his eyes never wavering from her face.
“See, Danny?” Edna said. “We’ll bring Sugar here to Emma and Lizzie, and let Uncle Melvin help us train her.”
“No!” yelled Danny.
“Why?”
“’Cause. Nobody’s going to make me get back on Sugar after she dumps me off.”
Lizzie laughed; she couldn’t help it. Danny was so little and skinny, but his voice was so mighty, and he certainly knew without a doubt what he meant. Lizzie loved him. She caught Emma’s eye and knew she felt the same way. It would be fun walking to school every day with these interesting, different cousins.
“Edna!”
Someone from the house was calling them. Edna answered, and they all trooped back to the house, after carefully closing Dolly’s gate to her stall.
“Edna, would you go over to Marlene’s house and get some hot dogs in the freezer?” asked Aunt Mary. “The men will be hungry and there’s no reason Melvin Annie should make supper—she’s just too tired.”
Aunt Mary, as well as the rest of the relatives who lived in Jefferson County, spoke differently than Emma and Lizzie. They all came from Ohio where Doddy Miller lived, so their Pennsylvania Dutch accent was completely different. Mam’s speech was very nearly like theirs, although she had lived in Pennsylvania long enough that she didn’t talk quite like they did. But when she was with her relatives, she rolled her ‘r’s more frequently, and her long ‘i’ sound became more of a short ‘a’ sound. Lizzie loved to hear them talk, because it sounded so cozy and warm. She never could understand why their speech reminded her of date pudding; warm, clean beds; smiling, friendly people; and happiness. But it did.