Priscilla's Escape

by Diane Craver

  “I’m so sorry, Daed.” How could Daadi King have hit his son for painting? Then burning his pictures was extremely cruel. Her eyes filled with tears. “Is that why you moved to Fields Corner?”

  “David Hershberger and I moved because the land was cheaper here, but deep down I think another reason was to get away from my father. I knew my brother would continue to farm with Dat, so I wasn’t leaving him without a son to help with the farm.”

  “Why didn’t you paint again when you moved?” She heard a big sigh from her father while she waited for his answer. Once away from her grandfather, he could’ve painted, she thought. It would’ve been wonderful to share her love of creating pictures with her daed. Apparently, Daadi had killed his desire to paint. She couldn’t imagine giving up her painting.

  “When I first moved to Fields Corner, I met your mother. We started courting and went to singings. It was a special time for us. I devoted a lot of time to farming my new land and building a house. Then when I was chosen to be a bishop, I knew I would never paint again. I could hear my father’s words telling me that painting wasn’t for a man. I wanted to focus on being a good bishop for our church district. Our family’s needs were more important to me than painting. I don’t regret giving it up, but I regret telling you to quit for the summer. When you come home, you can paint. Your talent is a blessing from God.”

  “Danki, Daed. I guess painting is in my blood. I think you should paint again. It’s in your soul. I’m thankful I got your painting talent. It’s something we have in common.” She took a deep breath because she needed to find out something. But fear was in her heart. Maybe he couldn’t love her as much because of her talent. “Is that why sometimes you have seemed distant to me . . . because of my painting? Was it a painful reminder of how your father acted?”

  “I love you, Priscilla. I am sorry you feel I’ve been distant. I care about you so much, and that’s why I tried to push you into taking the kneeling vow this year. We don’t want to lose you to the world. It’s important to me and to your mother that you join our Amish church. I realize it has to be your choice. Rumspringa is your time to reflect and to experience life on your own. I shouldn’t have tried to rush you into taking instructions this summer. I don’t want to rob you of the time you need to make your decision about joining our faith.”

  “I love you too, Daed. I’m glad you called.” She cleared her throat. “Being here has been good for me because I feel so close to God while I’m painting his beautiful ocean. Whenever I paint, I give thanks to God. The ocean is like his love and is never-ending.”

  “I’m glad to hear you’re close to our Lord. He directed me to Proverbs 20:5 recently. I’ll read it to you because it fits your situation. ‘The purposes of a person’s heart are deep waters, but one who has insight draws them out.’ I read this to mean that we should navigate ourselves to the purpose God has instilled in us. Each one of us has a God-given calling and purpose to fulfill on this earth. You should do the job that reflects the gift He has given you.”

  “I like that.”

  “How is the preaching in the Pinecraft church? Are the sermons as inspiring and gut as mine?” He chuckled.

  She laughed. “Never as gut as yours or the others. Is that a sneaky way to ask if I’ve attended church? Hannah and I go together each Sunday.”

  “I’m glad you’re attending church. It’s been nice talking with you, but I better let you get back to what you were doing before I called.”

  “I was walking along the beach.” Before they ended their phone call, Priscilla thought about asking her father what she should do about the art show. But should she bring it up when their conversation had been going so well?

  “Are you enjoying painting the beach?”

  “Ya. I love painting here. I have two finished and I’m working on a third one. I’m not sure they will sell as well as my Amish scenes do. Most English tourists want to buy anything that looks Amish to them.”

  “Molly mentioned your work might be in an art gallery.”

  She couldn’t believe Molly had said anything about that. “The gallery owner hasn’t seen my paintings yet.”

  “Molly said you thought about having Stephen bring some of your paintings from home to include in the art gallery, but you changed your mind.”

  “I decided it would be prideful.”

  “You give praise to God for your talent. In the past, I might have thought you were being prideful, but I’ve come to realize you aren’t. I’d like to see your beach paintings, but I can see why the art show is an incredible opportunity for you. Pray about what you should do and allow God to guide you in your decision about the art show.”

  “It has been great praying on the beach. I walk early in the morning and pray a lot before I get busy with taking care of Olivia and cleaning the beach house. Feeling the ocean breeze on my face and looking at the beautiful turquoise water makes me feel thankful to be here.” She needed to apologize for leaving. Her father had shown an apologetic side and told her what he regretted. She wanted to apologize for her actions. “Daed, I am sorry for leaving the way I did.”

  “I’m sorry too. Your mother and I made a mistake making you quit the fabric store.”

  There wasn’t any point in saying she agreed. “Have Sarah and Laura reopened the store since the fire?”

  “No. First, it was because the authorities wanted them to wait to rebuild so they could investigate more.”

  “Do they suspect arson?”

  “They did at first. Apparently, it was caused by a couple of teenagers who were smoking cigarettes. The boys said a door was unlocked, so they decided to go in there to smoke. A bolt of fabric fell on one boy and the material went up in flames fast.”

  “Were they Amish or English?” She remembered a few boys from her school smoking in a barn and how they caused a fire.

  “They aren’t from our church. I heard the boys were visiting their English grandmother.”

  “Hopefully they will get the store reopened soon.” Maybe she could return to work when she left Siesta Key. Her parents might not object any longer to her having a part-time job at the store.

  “Laura isn’t sure she wants to continue as an owner with Sarah. I guess she’s getting married soon.”

  “I hope Sarah can find someone to buy Laura’s share of the business.”

  Off in the distance, Priscilla thought she saw Mitch with Heidi and another woman. She squinted and realized it was definitely her two friends. “I see Heidi and the next-door neighbor Mitch on the beach. Another woman appears to be with them. Maybe they are looking for me. I’m going to walk that way and see if it could be Sabrina with them. Oh, Sabrina is the name of the art gallery owner. I have never met her.”

  “I’ll let you go so you can talk to them. We all miss you and love you.”

  Her eyes misted at his words. “Tell everyone hi for me. I miss everyone. Daed, I love you. Thanks for calling.”

  After she said goodbye, Priscilla whispered, “Thank you, Lord, that my daed called, and for him sharing with me about his past as an artist.”

  As she walked back toward the house, Priscilla saw Heidi and Mitch waving to her. She waved back and proceeded walking in their direction. When she got closer to them, Priscilla saw Grayson was with them. He must’ve been walking behind Mitch before, which is why I didn’t see him. Mitch is taller and bigger than Grayson, she thought.

  Once she was next to them, Heidi said, “Sabrina, I’d like you to meet Priscilla King.”

  While she murmured hello, Priscilla noticed Sabrina had chin-length black hair. She wore white capris with a coral top and looked to be in her early fifties.

  “I’m delighted to meet you, Priscilla. I was going over details of Heidi’s show when she offered to bring me here. I’d like to see your work, if that’s okay with you.”

  Priscilla nodded. “Sure, they are in the house. I only have two paintings.”

  “That’s okay.” Sabrina tucked a lock of hair behind
her ear. “Heidi mentioned you have more at your house in Ohio.”

  “I do.” A nervous tension propelled Priscilla to want to hurry and show her paintings. She might as well learn what an art gallery owner thought of her artistic ability. “I’m happy to show them to you. Thank you for coming here. Follow me.”

  Chapter Twenty-One

  “Your voice sounds weird. What’s wrong?” Stephen asked.

  Priscilla sat in a corner chair in her bedroom, rubbing her forehead with her free hand. “I don’t know what to tell you first because I’ve had many surprises today. It’s been overwhelming.”

  “Good surprises, I hope.”

  “I guess all the surprises could be considered good.” Although she was eager to tell him about her father calling her, she decided to first mention what Sabrina had told her after seeing her paintings. “I met the art gallery owner, Sabrina, this evening. She wants to show my paintings at the same time as Heidi’s art show. Sabrina wants to include my Amish ones, even though she hasn’t seen them. She feels confident that they will be good enough to include.”

  “That’s great. I’ll go to your house and pick up the paintings. I guess your parents or sisters will know which ones to give me.”

  “Before you do that, I need to tell you more. Sabrina wants me to sign a contract. I never did with Sarah at the fabric store. She took ten percent commission when she sold one of my paintings. I trusted her. Sabrina wants to charge one thousand dollars for each of my beach paintings. She takes forty percent commission. That seems way too high to me, but Heidi said many gallery owners take fifty percent commission. I don’t know why anyone would pay one thousand dollars for a painting, but does that sound right for Sabrina to pocket that much?”

  “What?” Stephen’s voice rose. “It is a large commission. Maybe you could ask Madison what she thinks. I guess Sabrina is bringing the buyers to her art gallery and must have advertising expenses. But forty percent seems steep to me.”

  “Heidi did tell me that Sabrina has a reputation as one of the most influential gallery owners in the area. Even with the large commission she receives, I’ll still receive more than I ever have before. I never price my pictures that high for the fundraisers or for the fabric store. If my stuff sells, I’ll give part of the money to the medical fund.” Priscilla laughed. “I might need some of the money for a bus trip home.”

  Stephen asked, “Have you heard about Mary’s baby son having heart surgery?”

  A sad emotion surfaced at Stephen’s question. It reminded her when Beth’s baby girl, Nora, was stillborn. It hadn’t seemed fair that Beth and Henry lost their first child. “No, I hadn’t heard. Is he going to be okay?”

  “He seems to be doing well. Our medical fund is low, so Sabrina selling your paintings might be an answer to a prayer. The heart surgery at Children’s Hospital in Cincinnati cost a bundle. Your daed and the ministers want to have fundraisers to help with the hospital expenses.”

  “Daed didn’t mention it when he called me today.”

  “That’s awesome he called you.” Stephen’s voice peaked in excitement, then dropped an octave. “He didn’t call to complain about me visiting you for your birthday, or about my car, did he?”

  Now that she thought about it, she was surprised. Although his family went to a neighboring church district, it seemed strange that he hadn’t commented on Stephen owning a car. He’d strongly disapproved of any of their youth having cars during their running-around time. “Nee, he said nothing about you owning a car. He didn’t complain about you driving your car to Florida to see me, but he told me something I never suspected.” She explained briefly to Stephen about her father’s secret, then finished, “He didn’t say I couldn’t tell anyone, but maybe you shouldn’t mention it to others.”

  “I won’t say anything. That’s something, that he used to paint.”

  “Daed wants to see my beach pictures, but those will be in the art gallery if I decide to sign Sabrina’s contract. I hope I’ll have time to paint a few more to take home.”

  “I can’t wait to see your pictures,” Stephen said.

  “I can’t wait to see you. I’ve missed you.”

  “I’ve missed you too.”

  She loved hearing that. “Ach, something else I learned today is that Madison is going home for a few days. When you come to see me, she and Olivia will be back in Ohio. I might stay with Hannah because I don’t want to stay alone. I’ll call Hannah tomorrow to see what she thinks about having me as a roommate for a few days.”

  “Did Madison ask you to go stay with Hannah?”

  “No, she said I can stay here, but I feel funny staying in their house when they aren’t here.” Priscilla thought how she also didn’t want to be at the house alone because Mitch would be sure to find out, but maybe he wouldn’t visit her too much. He’d have to respect her time with Stephen. Wouldn’t he?

  “I’m surprised Madison is going to Ohio,” Stephen said. “I still want to visit you, but it’s too bad she didn’t plan this before and you could’ve been home for your birthday. Are you disappointed she didn’t give you more notice about her plans?”

  “Madison’s in the family way and she has a doctor’s appointment,” Priscilla explained. “She’d rather see her own doctor instead of someone here in Sarasota. And her husband is getting tired of flying here for the weekends.”

  “I can believe that. I’ve never flown, of course, but I wouldn’t want to travel by plane each weekend. That doesn’t sound fun at all. It seems like she could’ve written her book at her home in Ohio. That way, she wouldn’t be splitting up the family.”

  From her bedroom window, Priscilla watched the waves rolling in on the sandy beach, and knew why Madison enjoyed writing from the beach house. “I guess she thought it’d be a nice change to write by the ocean. It is peaceful and beautiful here. I know Madison’s anxious to get her book finished, so that she can return home for the rest of the summer. She recently told me she might finish a little earlier.”

  Priscilla was going to tell him more about Madison’s writing plans, but when she heard Olivia’s voice, she turned away from the ocean view. She saw Olivia was in the doorway and dressed in a pretty pink sundress. Priscilla had never seen the dress before, and thought how Madison had a lot of cute clothes for her daughter to wear. “Hi, Olivia. Do you need me?”

  The little girl shook her head. “Mommy wanted me to tell you that we’re going to get ice cream at Yoder’s. Do you want to go?”

  Although Priscilla loved ice cream, especially chocolate almond, she wanted to ask Stephen something important. “Thank you, Oliva, for asking, but I’ll pass.”

  Stephen said, “You can go. I know how you love ice cream.”

  “Nee, I want to talk a little longer.”

  Before turning to leave, Olivia grinned. “You must be talking to your boyfriend. You always want ice cream.”

  Priscilla gave Olivia a smile. “Such a smart girl. Have fun.”

  In a pleased voice, Stephen said, “I’m feeling pretty great that you passed up your favorite dessert for me.”

  “You’re driving hundreds of miles to see me. I think our relationship must be very special and close.” She waited for him to respond that he felt the same way. If he did, she would talk to him about their faith dilemma.

  “It is, for sure and certain. Although we have only been dating for a short time, I think about you all the time.”

  “That’s the way I feel too.” She took a deep breath. “Because I have strong feelings for you, I have been wondering if you are thinking about taking the baptism instructions. I pray a lot about what to do . . . should I remain in our Amish faith and take the kneeling vows? Or should I join a Mennonite church? They allow electricity and phones in their houses. But then I think how my father is a bishop and he’ll be disappointed if I decide not to become Amish. And my older siblings have converted to the faith. But is family enough of a reason for me to join? Are you thinking of committing, or do you feel
like it is too soon to decide?”

  “I haven’t decided.” He chuckled. “My mamm was hoping you would cause me to start taking the baptism classes this summer. I need more time, but if you don’t join, then I don’t think I can. I can’t imagine taking the baptism classes if you decide not to.”

  “Do you think you could ever give up your car?”

  “I do love my automobile, but I keep praying to God to point me in the right direction. I understand I have free will, but I’m hoping whatever I decide will seem right and natural to me. If I decide to take baptism into the faith, I won’t have a problem selling my car.”

  “It’s such a big decision. If we join, then change our minds and leave, we will be shunned. I couldn’t bear for that to happen.” It would break her heart to be shunned. She understood the reasoning behind it, but that didn’t make it any easier to realize she must not have any doubts if she decided to join their Amish church. It had to be for a lifetime commitment. Otherwise, if she left and disobeyed the Ordnung, she would not be allowed to sit and eat with her family and could never sell her paintings to Amish people. Once shunned, the excommunicated person could not do business with another Amish person. “My dad says that shunning is based on a Bible verse in Thessalonians.”

  They talked for a few additional minutes before they said their goodbyes. Priscilla walked to her dresser and set her phone down on it. Talking daily to Stephen helped, but it never took the place of seeing him in person, she thought. Gazing again at the beach, she twirled the ends of one of the strings to her kapp around her finger. It was gut to hear Stephen mention praying to make the right decision about their faith.

  Right now, she felt mixed up about everything—the art contract with Sabrina, where she should stay when Madison left for a few days, and whether she should join their church. If she had stayed home in Fields Corner, she wouldn’t be worrying about what to do about signing a contract or staying alone in the beach house. At home, a concern would always be whether to join the church. Why can’t I be like Molly and Beth? They had no difficulty in deciding to be baptized in the Amish faith.