They had married quickly and quietly, after a few meetings with the bishop. Fanny would always look back fondly on the small ceremony that had included just a few family members and friends. Afterward, there’d been a supper at Zed’s parents’ house with chicken prepared by the girls and some of their friends, a celebration similar to a holiday meal. And then, their blessed wedding night.
After the children were down, they had rocked together by the fire and talked softly. Then she took him by the hand and led him into her bedroom—their bedroom—and Fanny thanked Gott for bringing her Zed. Funny, but she’d been a little nervous at first. “You’re shaking like a leaf,” he’d told her, and she’d remarked on the low temperatures outside. But after they’d slid under the covers, after the kerosene lamp was turned down, they had found each other. Oh, they had kindled a warmth that would chase away the frostiest winter chill.
An Amish man came up to Fanny and Meg, his face pale. It was Amos Fisher, whose wife, Mary, was due any day now. “Mary is in the buggy,” Amos told Fanny. “She needs your help now. I’m taking her over to the Jordans’ cottage.”
Up the lane, a single gray-covered buggy sat. A woman waved from the front seat.
“Tell her I’ll meet her there,” Meg said, raking her hair back into a ponytail. She gave Fanny’s arm a squeeze. “I got this.”
“Back to business,” Fanny teased.
As Meg headed off to care for Mary, Fanny turned back to the construction site. Which one of the tall Amish men was her husband? It was a bit hard to make him out amid the hundred or so men in similar clothing with black hats covering their heads.
Then she found him, straddling a rafter with Will beside him. He was showing their son something to do with the hammer.
She smiled as Zed drove a nail into the plank. Dear Zed. Such a good man. They were truly blessed.
For my dear editor Junessa Viloria,
insightful and brilliant.
Thank you for believing in my characters.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I am ever grateful to my editor, Junessa Viloria, for her gentle hand in shaping a story, her understanding of human nature, and her bright enthusiasm.
Many thanks to Dr. Violet Dutcher, whose nurturing advice and lifetime of relationships with Amish family and friends were invaluable to me. Her knowledge of Amish culture and literature is a winning combination.
And as always, thanks to the people of Lancaster County, the inspiration for these characters.
BY ROSALIND LAUER
LANCASTER CROSSROADS
A Simple Crossroads (novella)
A Simple Faith
A Simple Hope
A Simple Charity
SEASONS OF LANCASTER
A Simple Winter
A Simple Spring
A Simple Autumn
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
ROSALIND LAUER grew up in a large family in Maryland and began visiting Lancaster County’s Amish community as a child. She attended Wagner College in New York City and worked as an editor for Simon & Schuster and Harlequin Books. She currently lives with her family in Oregon, where she writes in the shade of some towering two-hundred-year-old Douglas fir trees.
Facebook.com/pages/rosalind-lauer/131734543591674
A Simple Charity Page 30