I’m where I belong, Jenny thought, hearing the horse and carriage as it moved up Hickory Lane toward Cattail Road.
Later that morning, Jenny surprised herself by making her first-ever perfect loaf of bread. “Thanks to a few tips from my mother,” she told Rebecca, who beamed with happiness when she shared how she’d connected with her family.
“Ach, now, this makes me wonder if you weren’t s’posed to return to them for a time.”
“I believe you’re right.” Jenny set aside the loaf to cool.
“Sometimes the Lord leads us to make amends in situations.” Tears sprang to Rebecca’s eyes. “In His own time . . . and way.”
Jenny didn’t bring up Katie and Dan, or anything regarding Rebecca’s confession to the bishop. There was no need to. But she completely agreed with Rebecca and smiled warmly at the tenderhearted woman.
Later, when their morning chores were finished, Rebecca recited off a list of flowers and other gardening items she wanted to purchase at an Amish greenhouse. “The owner, Maryanna, is expecting me today, and I daresay it’s ’bout time you saw her charming place for yourself.”
They headed out to greet the balmy day and to hitch up Star. Jenny helped Rebecca, remembering more than she’d expected to, though Rebecca said nothing to point it out. And then they were off.
Jenny was helping to carry flats of fluffy golden marigolds to the back of Rebecca’s enclosed buggy when she saw Andrew Lapp coming up the driveway. Not certain she should catch his eye, she wondered if he was headed to the greenhouse, too.
But he came right up to her, made a comment about the wonderful weather, and then asked if she might go for a walk with him later. “Once you’re back at Samuel and Rebecca’s,” he said with a serious look.
She glanced over her shoulder, glad Rebecca was still talking with Maryanna at the entrance to the greenhouse. The two women were obviously unaware of Andrew’s presence.
“Sure, I’d like that, Andrew.”
His smile was so broad, so endearing, it took Jenny’s breath away. “There’s the prettiest little springhouse pond just down the road,” he said, leaning closer. “I’d like to show ya.” He winked at her.
She played along, her heart beating hard. “Sounds nice.”
Then, taking her by surprise, he led her around to the other side of the buggy, and when they were completely obscured from view, he reached for both of her hands. “Just so ya know, all that prayin’ I was doing back when . . . well, it wasn’t just that you’d pass your Proving, Jenny.”
She frowned, trying to comprehend what he meant. Then, seeing his familiar twinkle, she smiled. To think he’d waited for her!
“You know what I’d really like to do right this minute,” he said, his voice soft. “I’d like to take you in my arms and never let ya go.”
Jenny knew she must be blushing—even more so when he raised her hand to his lips and tenderly kissed it, his gaze never leaving hers. “I think you stole my heart that very first Preaching service.”
“When you admonished me about snitchin’ the ministers’ food?”
“Ah . . . so you do remember?”
Warmed by his sweet admission, Jenny longed to walk and talk with him more privately, as he’d suggested. And soon!
“So, Jenny Burns, how long do ya ’spect to be stayin’ with us this time?” he asked, still holding her hands.
She smiled up at him. “How’s forever sound?”
Epilogue
The following May, more than a year after my return to the People, the deacon approached me about possibly joining the church. He did so on behalf of all the ministerial brethren. “Do ya feel you’re ready?” By now, I was speaking the language fairly fluently and could even hitch up a horse to a buggy—on my own! Even my sock darning improved after Tessie Miller took me under her proverbial wing and taught me a couple tricks.
So, from May to August, I will attend baptismal instruction every other Sunday morning, prior to the September baptismal service. I’m expected to acquaint myself with and understand the Dordrecht—the Confession of Faith—as well as meet individually with the ministers on Preaching Sundays.
“Remember,” the deacon warned, “it’s best never to take this holy vow than to make it and break it later on.”
After he left, I thanked God for allowing me to learn and understand the Old Ways. But most of all, I was grateful for the opportunity to live among people with whom I can relate. The topping on the cake is Andrew Lapp, who officially proposed marriage to me the week after the deacon’s visit.
We’ll wait to marry until after I’m baptized, sometime in the middle of November, Andrew says. My parents and Kiersten and her husband are talking about coming, even though I’ve informed them of the long service and the hard benches. Dad says he’d like to take another look at my Deitsch Bible, which is heartening. Oh, and he wants to meet Andrew, of course. I’m just glad my family is interested in seeing Hickory Hollow for themselves. Who knows, it might help them understand why I’m so drawn to the place.
At any rate, I’ve never been so happy, or so settled. What I feel for Andrew Lapp, and he for me, isn’t just a special kind of love. Plenty of couples think they have a corner on that sort of thing. We, however, believe God drew us together for a reason, and our love belongs to Him first. Andrew says our love is all wrapped up in a firm and precious faith—“our foundation’s gut,” he likes to say. And when he winks at me, my heart flutters nearly out of control.
Although Marnie is my first choice for a bridesmaid, I can’t choose her to stand up with Andrew and me because she and Roy married last fall, and an Amish bridesmaid is required to be a single young woman. I’m honestly leaning toward Emmalyn, although she doesn’t know it yet. It seems like the right thing to do.
Naomi’s second on my list, as she and I continue to be close friends. Tessie Miller’s a good choice, as well, as are several of Marnie’s younger cousins.
All of us get along so beautifully . . . it’s like having a dozen or more sisters!
Ella Mae said months ago that she truly suspected—well, no, she was quite positive I would return here, after I left for home. She also insisted that Rebecca’s confessing her former secret was the best thing that could’ve happened. “Because sometimes when you tell the truth, you can start a fire,” she said, and I think I understand what she means.
As for Rebecca and Katie, there is even more cause for rejoicing, with another grandson, little Leon Matthew, celebrating his first birthday soon. Samuel declares he’s the spitting image of Elam and Annie’s son, Daniel—Dan’s sister’s only child.
Rebecca’s confided in me that she still prays for Katie’s and her husband’s return to the Amish church. But she no longer believes she has thwarted the helpful effects of the Bann on them. If anything, she is more accepting of their earnest faith, as is the bishop. And while the baptized People still aren’t permitted to go to the Fishers’ to visit, Katie and Dan are sincerely welcomed here in Hickory Hollow.
What Katie once told me is true: A person grows best spiritually when exploring God’s Word, letting it get rooted and planted in the soil of the heart. There is no substitute for that for anyone, Plain or not.
And I’ve discovered that Hickory Hollow is not the ultimate place, no more than any community is perfect. But I do know that when the Lord puts a desire in your heart, you’ll know it . . . and if you allow Him to nurture it, that yearning will blossom into a brechdiech Gaarde—magnificent garden—of blessing and grace.
Author’s Note
For the very first young woman who wrote to me years ago, pleading to know what it would require to become Amish, I offer a special thank-you for planting the seed of this book in my thinking and in my heart. This story belongs to you! The Secret Keeper seeks to bring to life the heart’s cry of many thousands of readers who yearn for the Old Ways or who wish to live with an Old Order Amish family somewhere near Hickory Hollow.
I am sincerely blessed with devote
d readers, as well as the extraordinary people who edit and publish my novels. Thanks to each of you, especially to David Horton and Rochelle Glöege, ever astute and encouraging—two of my greatest joys.
I also wish to pay tribute to the many unsung heroes of my research, assistants who tirelessly check and double-check my fact gathering, including Amish and Mennonite friends and family, and my own dear Dave and our grown children, Julie, Janie, and Jonathan.
My great appreciation also goes out to the growing number of prayer partners, especially my wonderful friends at Bethany House, who take praying seriously—a real blessing to this author!
For all of you who kept my “secret” (the storyline for this book) while I delved into the journey of Jenny Burns’s Proving time, I am truly thankful. And for those who prayed so earnestly when I fell and broke my right wrist just three short days before the book’s deadline, I am forever grateful.
Hank Hershberger, Pennsylvania Dutch linguist and former Amishman, was always there for me and graciously answered numerous questions regarding Deitsch, not to mention how to hitch up horses and ponies to buggies and carts. Thanks so much!
I’m also indebted to the superb writings of John A. Hostetler and Donald Kraybill, the spokesman for the Lancaster County Amish community . . . and to the good folk at the Lancaster Mennonite Historical Society.
It is my ongoing delight to create stories that touch your heartstrings and somehow make a difference in your life or others’.
Soli Deo Gloria!
Beverly Lewis, born in the heart of Pennsylvania Dutch country, is the New York Times bestselling author of more than ninety books. Her stories have been published in eleven languages worldwide. A keen interest in her mother’s Plain heritage has inspired Beverly to write many Amish-related novels, beginning with The Shunning, which has sold more than a million copies. The Brethren was honored with a 2007 Christy Award.
Beverly lives with her husband, David, in Colorado.
By Beverly Lewis
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HOME TO HICKORY HOLLOW
The Fiddler • The Bridesmaid
The Guardian • The Secret Keeper
THE ROSE TRILOGY
The Thorn • The Judgment • The Mercy
ABRAM’S DAUGHTERS
The Covenant • The Betrayal • The Sacrifice
The Prodigal • The Revelation
THE HERITAGE OF LANCASTER COUNTY
The Shunning • The Confession • The Reckoning
ANNIE’S PEOPLE
The Preacher’s Daughter • The Englisher • The Brethren
THE COURTSHIP OF NELLIE FISHER
The Parting • The Forbidden • The Longing
SEASONS OF GRACE
The Secret • The Missing • The Telling
The Postcard • The Crossroad
The Redemption of Sarah Cain
October Song • Sanctuary (with David Lewis) • The Sunroom
Amish Prayers
The Beverly Lewis Amish Heritage Cookbook
www.beverlylewis.com
Resources: bethanyhouse.com/AnOpenBook
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