Fields of Corn

by Sarah Price

  "Sylvia's help is always welcome, Emanuel. But I could certainly manage," Shana replied.

  "Ja, you could, of course," he replied, looking disappointed for just the briefest of moments.

  "But," Shana quickly added. "Perhaps Sylvia should come anyway."

  "Vell, if you can handle the chickens, the garden, the house, helping me with the milking and planting, and caring for young Noah by yourself, her help won't be necessary. It isn't as though we have such a large family, ja?"

  "Ja," she mimicked, a smile lighting up her face. "At least not yet."

  "Not yet?" he asked hopefully.

  "Perhaps by summer’s end…"

  "Ja?"

  “Ja," she finally admitted.

  Emanuel shifted Noah on his lap. For a long moment, he remained silent as he held his son. Shana watched him, her cheeks rosy and her eyes bright. She waited for his response. But, instead, he stared down at Noah's sleeping face. He brushed his fingers down the infant's cheek. Finally, he looked up at Shana. "I will speak to Sylvia." Yet, his somber words could not hide the pride in his face.

  By April, Emanuel had plowed the section that Shana would garden with a slight expansion at her request. Then, her days were full with gardening on top of all her other chores. Sometimes, when she hurried to the house to answer Noah's cries, she'd think back to the night Emanuel had asked her to marry him. She'd smile when she remembered her ignorance about not having any work to do during the day. Now, her days were so full, she often didn't complete all of the chores she had planned. Yet, at the end of every day, she'd go to sleep beside Emanuel knowing that what she hadn't done could be handled the next day.

  Emanuel began plowing the fields at the same time. He plowed the back acreage for the corn and, when that was completed, he began disappearing toward the Beiler farm. While she knew that he was plowing the new land, she kept his secret silent, waiting for the right moment to ask about the land that he had purchased but never mentioned to her. He plowed from before sunrise to well after sunset. He was weary and tired at night, more so than she remembered from the previous year. When he finally came in from the fields, he'd barely stay awake for supper and retired to bed immediately afterwards. She'd help with the early morning and evening milking but, beyond that, her chores kept her from assisting Emanuel in the fields.

  One day, when she had seen him retreating to the new land, she brought Noah and a pitcher of fresh iced tea out to the fields. At first he didn't see her. But Noah started to cry and Emanuel quickly reined in the mules. He greeted her with a smile and took the pitcher from her hand. She soothed Noah, rubbing his back and shifting him in her arms. "You're very neighborly to plow the Beiler’s old fields," she teased.

  "I'm plowing the Lapp's fields," he stated before he dipped the ladle into the pitcher and drank some of her homemade iced tea.

  "Have some of your relatives moved onto their farm?" she asked playfully.

  He dipped the ladle again. "You know that the Meyers moved there."

  "The Mennonites?"

  He smiled. "Ja, the Mennonites."

  "I haven't met them but I'll make a point to visit. They are just married, yes?"

  Emanuel reached out for Noah and took him from her arms. "Ja, just married." He lifted the baby over his head, laughing as Noah smiled and gurgled in delight. He did this several times then, too tired to continue the game, he held the baby against his shoulder. "One day, Noah will need land to plow, too," Emanuel finally admitted. "With land so scarce, the opportunity to expand will only come along so often."

  Shana nodded and looked around herself. The land was flat and dipped a little closer to the Beiler's old farmhouse in the distance. "What are you planting here?"

  "Wheat."

  "That's a lot of work for one man," she said, returning her gaze from the field to meet Emanuel's eyes. "Perhaps it isn't Sylvia we should ask to stay with us this summer but Steve or Daniel instead."

  "Hard work is from the Lord," he replied wearily.

  "With corn, tobacco, alfalfa, and wheat, you'll need some assistance."

  He took of his hat and wiped his brow with the back of his arm. His blue eyes danced across the horizon, staring toward the fields by the barn that were waiting for the corn to be seeded. "Perhaps with planting, ja," he finally said as he slid his hat back onto his head. "Perhaps Daniel could come and help if Daed doesn't need him."

  That evening, Emanuel returned from the field early to milk the cows. After an early supper, he hitched Lucky Monday to the buggy and waited for Shana to emerge from the house. She wore her black cape and bonnet with Noah wrapped in a warm blanket. Emanuel let her into the buggy first, holding Noah while she climbed in. Then, after he settled next to her, they rode over to Katie and Jonas' farm.

  The trip took over an hour and, with all of the jostling, Shana was thankful to arrive. Three and a half year old Linda ran out of the house to greet them with Lillian following closely. "What a surprise!" she exclaimed as she took Noah from Shana's arms. "We didn't expect you ‘til after the autumn planting."

  Katie quickly emerged from the house, her feet bare and her glasses slipping slightly off of her nose. "We're just getting ready for supper," she greeted them.

  "We've eaten," Emanuel replied. "Is Daed about?"

  "Ja. Doing the milking."

  Emanuel quickly disappeared, leaving Shana to follow the women into the house for some iced tea. She sat quietly at the table with her glass while Lillian and Katie hurried around the kitchen for the evening meals finishing touches. Sylvia and Susie cooed over Noah until Katie directed them to set the table. Linda clamored around, trying to peek at the baby. Shana smiled while she watched her.

  "Momma had a baby like that," Linda exclaimed, pointing to Jacob in her mother's arms. "But he's bigger."

  Lillian reached over and tugged at Linda's braid. "And we're going to have another baby like that in the summer."

  Shana lowered Noah so Linda could see him better. "You were a baby once, too."

  "Was not," Linda argued.

  "You shouldn't disagree with your elders, Lindy," Lillian gently scolded her. "Apologize to Shana."

  "Hear Sylvia's going to be visiting you again this summer," Katie said to Shana, her own simple acknowledgement of the upcoming birth of her twelfth grandchild.

  "August, I suppose." Shana smiled as Sylvia looked up from the table, obviously unaware that she was going anywhere. But the glow in her eyes as she met Shana's gaze told her that she was anything but disappointed. Susie nudged her in the side to finish the job at hand.

  Lillian shifted Jacob in her arms. "Ja, it wouldn't do to have Susie come visiting for so long. Amos Zook might worry when he came calling and she was gone," she teased. Shana's eyes caught the red flush that covered Susie's cheeks. But, she didn't reply to Linda's gentle ribbing or Sylvia's hushed giggle.

  "You have a beau, Susie?" Shana asked innocently, although she already knew the answer.

  "He's not my boyfriend," she replied softly.

  Katie dropped some freshly peeled potatoes into a pot of boiling water. "Vell, now, he's driven you home from two singings already."

  "I saw him waiting for you after church last Sunday," Sylvia quietly added. Susie's cheeks flushed again and she cast a silencing glare at her younger sister.

  "He's just being neighborly," Susie said softly.

  "Indeed," Lillian said before she turned to Katie. "Perhaps we should plant more carrots and celery in the garden this year." They laughed at her reference to the subtle sign of an upcoming marriage: more carrots and celery to serve at the wedding day feast. Then, the teasing over, the subject of Amos Zook was dropped and the preparation for supper continued in silence.

  While they waited for Emanuel, Lillian took Shana next door to her house to show her a new quilt she was making with Katie. It was laid out across a large wooden quilting frame and already, the beautiful floral quilting pattern could be seen amidst the white and red pattern cloth. They were still look
ing at it when Shana heard Emanuel calling for her from outside. By the time Shana carried Noah outside to the waiting buggy, she noticed Daniel crouched in the back. She greeted him with an encouraging smile. He flashed her a large, shy grin back but didn't say a word.

  The ride back was in silence except for Noah's gurgles and coos. Finally, the rocking of the buggy put him to sleep. Shana felt her own eyes growing heavy and fought the urge to follow Noah's example. Back at the farm, she fixed Daniel some leftovers for supper while Emanuel excused himself for bed. Shana kept Daniel company while he ate, although her seventeen year old brother-in-law was still withdrawn from any women, even his sister-in-law.

  "We're glad your daed was able to let you stay with us and help with the plowing and planting," she said as she cleared his plate.

  "Ja," he replied.

  "Who will help your father?"

  Daniel answered slowly. "Steve and Sylvia. Maybe the two little boys, too."

  "Well, there's a lot of work for everyone, isn't there?" she quickly washed his plate and set it aside. "You can sleep in the downstairs bedroom. That way Noah won't bother you if he wakes up."

  Daniel nodded and got up from the table. "I imagine Emanuel will be waking me early so I'll say good-night," he said before disappearing into the back room.

  Shana watched him as he left the kitchen and smiled to herself as she finished cleaning the kitchen. The rest of her chores completed, she sat down at the table with Emanuel's Bible. Yet, she couldn't concentrate as she thought over the events from that day.

  She felt emotion in her heart as she realized the sacrifice that Jonas had made to let Daniel help Emanuel with his plowing and planting. There had been no questions asked or major discussions. Emanuel had requested and the family quickly readjusted. She shut the Bible and stared at the shadows that danced on the wall from the kerosene lamp. There was no spiritual guidance in the Bible for her tonight. Any lessons she needed to learn today she had learned from the love and generosity from Emanuel's family.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Shana heard the bottle smash outside the window and down the lane as she made their bed. For a second, she wasn't certain what she had heard and bent back down to tuck in the corner of the faded blue quilt. She hummed to herself, mentally listing the chores she wanted to get done that day: washing the clothes, cleaning the bathroom, maybe even helping Daniel and Emanuel with the planting. But, when she heard the gravel kicking up in their driveway as a car sped off, she stood up and quickly turned to the window. Squinting, she looked outside.

  A young boy emerged from around the side of their barn and jumped into the back of a blue pick-up truck that had pulled up to the end of their driveway. The truck sped away, three young boys with long brown hair sitting in the flatbed, laughing. She forced the window open and, for a long moment, just leaned against the sill, confused and uncomprehending what she had seen and heard. Then, her heart suddenly lurched into her throat and she ran from the bedroom and down the stairs. It was early afternoon and the sun was high in the sky. They hadn't been fortunate enough to have rain for the past week and the air was thick with humidity.

  As she hurried through the kitchen, Shana spared a concerned glance at Noah, sleeping in his crib by the kitchen table, before she tossed open the door and walked outside onto the porch. Her heart pounded inside her chest and she said a quick prayer. "Please God, not us," she whispered. But a gentle breeze broke through the hot air and, sure enough, she could smell it now. Fire.

  Her first reaction was to scream for Emanuel but she knew he wouldn't hear her from the fields. They were working the plot of land that bordered on the Yoder’s farm to the north. It wouldn't help anyway. She had heard too many stories to think they could save the barn. But there was a chance of saving whatever animals were still inside the barn. Most of the cows were out in the pasture but the horses were inside.

  She ran across the driveway and, the billow of smoke apparent now, she ignored her fear as she threw open the barn doors and entered. The hay must have caught first because the fire had already spread like wildfire. Through the rising smoke, she could see the two horses jumping and banging against the stalls as they tried to get out. Shana ran over to the stall doors and quickly struggled with the rusty bolts, sliding them back to unlock the stalls. Then, as carefully as she could, she flung the doors back to let the horses run toward the opening. Lady ran directly for the barn door, away from the smoke, but Lucky Monday continued to rear up, his eyes wild and frightened.

  Shana slowly backed away, trying to avoid the thrashing horse. But Lucky Monday suddenly lunged forward out of the stall, the door flinging backward and knocking Shana to the ground. Her head smashed against the cement floor and she felt the horse run over her, its one hoof tripping over her crumpled body. For what seemed a long while, she laid there, dazed and winded. She could smell the burning hay and wood. She could hear the crackling of the flames and sizzling of the burning paint. And then, she felt the intense heat and the pain.

  In just a matter of minutes, the barn would be engulfed in destructive fire and she knew her only chance was to get out. It was too dry and the fire was burning too fast. She struggled to her feet but everything swam before her eyes. She could hear some of the cows in the pasture just outside the barn bellowing. They could smell the fire and she could hear their fear. She needed to get to them, to open the gate for them to escape into the outer fields. But, she couldn't figure out how to get there. The smoke was thicker now, almost blinding. It had gone up so quickly and now, she was disoriented and lost inside, only feet away from safety.

  "Shana!"

  She could hear someone calling her name. She followed the sound, even though her vision was all but useless. She coughed and felt something warm against her legs. She reached down and grabbed the hem of her skirt to cover her mouth. She heard her name again and, to her relief, broke through the smoke as she found the open doorway. She stumbled outside, her eyes shut and her legs weak. She kept walking, away from the heat and the pain. Except, she suddenly realized, the pain didn't go away.

  "Dear God!" she heard someone say.

  She tried to force her eyes open but could only make out the outline of a dark shadow racing toward her. She dropped the skirt from her mouth and, feeling a pair of arms grabbing for her, she collapsed. "Shana! You're covered in blood!"

  “Where's Emanuel?" she managed to ask Daniel.

  She tried to open her eyes but Daniel seemed blurry. She tried to focus on his face but she could barely keep her eyes open. Had he said something about blood? She couldn't remember. Had he spoken at all? She didn't wait for his answer as she whispered, "Save the cows." Then everything went black.

  It was nighttime when she woke up. Her throat was dry and her eyes stung. She tried to look around the room but it was dark. Outside the open window, she heard the night crickets chirping and an occasional moo from the cows. They seemed further away, distant. She tried to move but the searing pain in her abdomen and legs stopped any further effort. A soft whimper escaped from her throat and she wrapped her arms around her belly, curling up into a ball to fight the pain. Something didn't feel right and tears slowly welled in her eyes. The soft glow from his lantern illuminated the room. She realized that she was downstairs, not in their bedroom. Her eyes slowly adjusted. Everything seemed strange and she couldn't understand where she was.

  "Emanuel?"

  "I'm here," he replied softly as he set the lantern down on the nightstand. His knees cracked as he sat in the chair next to the bed. He leaned forward and touched her forehead. "Don't try to talk, Shana."

  "Where are we?"

  "The Meyers," he answered softly. His eyes were sunken in his face and they lacked the usual glow that came from mischievousness or hard work.

  She started to sit up and cringed from the pain. "Where's Noah?"

  Emanuel smiled faintly in the gentle, orange light. "He's here," he reassured, putting a hand on her shoulder and gently pushing her back do
wn in the bed.

  "Why are we here?" she asked softly.

  "Don't you remember?" A puzzled look crossed his face as he explained, "There was a fire. The doctor felt it best to stay here until you were better and the house cleared out from the smoke."

  "How long have we been here?"

  "Two days."

  "Two days?" She repeated, reaching for his arm. "What happened?" She could see Emanuel bit his lower lip and she wondered what was wrong.

  "It was arson, Shana. Someone deliberately burned our barn."

  "Oh, Emanuel!" she cried out as she started to sit again. She leaned back into the pillow and tried to recall what had happened. Slowly, she remembered, bits and pieces. She spoke slowly, "I saw who did it. A pick-up truck and three boys."

  Emanuel sighed and smoothed her hair back. "That's not important, Shana."