by Marta Perry
PRAISE FOR THE PLEASANT VALLEY NOVELS
Hannah’s Joy
“[A] warm tale of love and belonging.”
—Genre Go Round Reviews
“Amish book lovers…you are ferhoodled if you don’t go out and pick up a copy of Hannah’s Joy RIGHT NOW!”
—The Mary Reader
“Refreshing.”
—Romance Novel News
Katie’s Way
“Superb…Magnificent Marta Perry provides another engaging Pleasant Valley tale.”
—Genre Go Round Reviews
“Katie’s Way stands alone, but readers will love…all of the novels in the order they were published…great characters and a bit of mystery…a delightful novel!”
—Romance Reviews Today
“A great story of friendship, second chances, and faith…wonderful.”
—Reviews from the Heart
“While this is a love story, it’s also a very complex story…I highly recommend this book and this series to anyone who loves Amish romances.”
—Night Owl Reviews
Sarah’s Gift
“Perry’s fourth Pleasant Valley book places her well-rounded characters in a sweet, entertaining romance.”
—RT Book Reviews
“Perry’s narrative keeps a nice pace as things develop credibly…between Aaron and Sarah; the legal challenge makes for more than merely romantic tension. Minor characters are also clearly sketched and differentiated.”
—Publishers Weekly
“The latest Pleasant Valley inspirational Amish romance is a superb contemporary that focuses on the role of a midwife in modern America…another powerful Pleasant Valley tale.”
—Genre Go Round Reviews
Anna’s Return
“Those who enjoyed the first two series titles will eagerly await this third entry, which does not disappoint. It will also appeal to fans of Amy Clipston and Shelley Shepard Gray.”
—Library Journal
“Perry crafts characters with compassion yet with insecurities that make them relatable.”
—RT Book Reviews
“A story of forgiveness, redemption, and mistaken ideas…full of wonderful characters…a wonderful book!”
—Romance Reviews Today
“In today’s fast-paced society, it’s a joy to sit back and enjoy a book that can combine romance, faith, and a bit of a thriller…I look forward to reading more of Ms. Perry’s books.”
—Night Owl Reviews
Rachel’s Garden
“Sure to appeal to fans of Beverly Lewis.”
—Library Journal
“A large part of the pleasure of this book is in watching Rachel be Amish, as she sells snapdragons and pansies to both Amish and ‘English’ at an outdoor market, taking in snatches of Pennsylvania Dutch.”
—The Philadelphia Inquirer
Leah’s Choice
“What a joy it is to read Marta Perry’s novels! Leah’s Choice has everything a reader could want—strong, well-defined characters; beautiful, realistic settings; and a thought-provoking plot. Readers of Amish fiction will surely be waiting anxiously for her next book.”
—Shelley Shepard Gray, author of the Sisters of the Heart series
“A knowing, careful look into Amish culture and faith. A truly enjoyable reading experience.”
—Angela Hunt, author of Five Miles South of Peculiar
“Marta Perry has done an exceptional job describing the tradition of the Amish community…a wonderful start to what is sure to be a very memorable series.”
—Romance Junkies
“I loved Leah’s Choice by Marta Perry! More than just a sweet Amish love story, it is a complex mix of volatile relationships and hard choices. I couldn’t put it down. I highly recommend it!”
—Colleen Coble, author of Tidewater Inn
Other Pleasant Valley novels by Marta Perry
LEAH’S CHOICE
RACHEL’S GARDEN
ANNA’S RETURN
SARAH’S GIFT
KATIE’S WAY
HANNAH’S JOY
NAOMI’S
CHRISTMAS
Pleasant Valley
BOOK SEVEN
MARTA PERRY
THE BERKLEY PUBLISHING GROUP
Published by the Penguin Group
Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
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Penguin Books Ltd., Registered Offices: 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England
This is an original publication of The Berkley Publishing Group.
PUBLISHER’S NOTE: The recipes contained in this book are to be followed exactly as written. The publisher is not responsible for your specific health or allergy needs that may require medical supervision.
The publisher is not responsible for any adverse reactions to the recipes contained in this book.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.
Copyright © 2012 by Martha Johnson.
Excerpt from Lydia’s Hope by Marta Perry copyright © 2012 by Martha Johnson.
Paper-star pattern © Tammy Seidick Graphic Design.
Cover art by Shane Rebenschied.
Cover design by Annette Fiore DeFex.
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Purchase only authorized editions.
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PUBLISHING HISTORY
Berkley trade paperback edition / October 2012
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Perry, Marta.
Naomi’s Christmas / Marta Perry.
p. cm. — (Pleasant Valley ; bk. 7)
ISBN: 978-1-101-61169-2
1. Amish—Fiction. 2. Lancaster County (Pa.)—Fiction. 3. Christmas stories. I. Title.
PS3616.E7933N36 2012
813’.6—dc23 2012018779
PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
ALWAYS LEARNING
PEARSON
This story is dedicated
to my children and grandchildren,
with much love.
And, as always, to Brian.
LIST OF CHARACTERS
Naomi Esch, a beekeeper, eldest child of Sam Esch
Nathan King, widower, a dairy farmer; Ada, his late wife; his children: Joshua, six, and Sadie, almost five
Ezra King, Nathan’s father
Sarah S
chultz, Nathan’s sister
Emma Miller, mother of Nathan’s late wife, mother of Elizabeth, Jessie, and Seth
Elizabeth Miller, middle sister of Nathan’s late wife
Jessie Miller, youngest sister of Nathan’s late wife
Seth Miller, brother of Nathan’s late wife, Englisch
Elijah Esch, Naomi’s oldest brother; Lovina, his wife
Isaiah Esch, Naomi’s youngest brother; Libby, his wife
Sam Esch, Naomi’s father
Betty Shutz, Sam Esch’s new wife
Anna and Sara, Naomi’s sisters
Paula Schatz, Mennonite, runs Pleasant Valley’s bakery
Hannah Brand, protagonist of Hannah’s Joy, Paula’s niece, partner in the bakery; William Brand, her husband
Leah Glick, protagonist of Leah’s Choice; Daniel Glick, her husband; their children: Matthew, Elizabeth, Jonah, and Rachel Anna
Katie Miller Brand, protagonist of Katie’s Way, quilt shop owner; Caleb Brand, her husband, furniture shop owner
Rhoda Miller, Katie’s sixteen-year-old sister
Rachel Zook, protagonist of Rachel’s Garden; Gideon Zook, her husband; their children: Becky, Joseph, Mary, and Josiah
Joseph and Myra Beiler, Leah’s brother and sister-in-law
Anna Beiler Fisher, protagonist of Anna’s Return; Samuel Fisher, her husband; their children: adopted daughter Grace and baby David
Barbara Beiler, Leah’s sister-in-law
Bishop Mose, spiritual leader of the Pleasant Valley Amish
GLOSSARY OF PENNSYLVANIA DUTCH WORDS AND PHRASES
ach. oh; used as an exclamation
agasinish. stubborn; self-willed
ain’t so. A phrase commonly used at the end of a sentence to invite agreement.
alter. old man
anymore. Used as a substitute for “nowadays.”
Ausbund. Amish hymnal. Used in the worship services, it contains traditional hymns, words only, to be sung without accompaniment. Many of the hymns date from the sixteenth century.
befuddled. mixed up
blabbermaul. talkative one
blaid. bashful
boppli. baby
bruder. brother
bu. boy
buwe. boys
daadi. daddy
Da Herr sei mit du. The Lord be with you.
denke. thanks (or danki)
Englischer. one who is not Plain
ferhoodled. upset; distracted
ferleicht. perhaps
frau. wife
fress. eat
gross. big
grossdaadi. grandfather
grossdaadi haus. An addition to the farmhouse, built for the grandparents to live in once they’ve “retired” from actively running the farm.
grossmutter. grandmother
gut. good
hatt. hard; difficult
haus. house
hinnersich. backward
ich. I
ja. yes
kapp. Prayer covering, worn in obedience to the Biblical injunction that women should pray with their heads covered. Kapps are made of Swiss organdy and are white. (In some Amish communities, unmarried girls thirteen and older wear black kapps during worship service.)
kinder. kids (or kinner)
komm. come
komm schnell. come quick
Leit. the people; the Amish
lippy. sassy
maidal. old maid; spinster
mamm. mother
middaagesse. lunch
mind. remember
onkel. uncle
Ordnung. The agreed-upon rules by which the Amish community lives. When new practices become an issue, they are discussed at length among the leadership. The decision for or against innovation is generally made on the basis of maintaining the home and family as separate from the world. For instance, a telephone might be necessary in a shop in order to conduct business but would be banned from the home because it would intrude on family time.
Pennsylvania Dutch. The language is actually German in origin and is primarily a spoken language. Most Amish write in English, which results in many variations in spelling when the dialect is put into writing! The language probably originated in the south of Germany but is common also among the Swiss Mennonite and French Huguenot immigrants to Pennsylvania. The language was brought to America prior to the Revolution and is still in use today. High German is used for Scripture and church documents, while English is the language of commerce.
rumspringa. Running-around time. The late teen years when Amish youth taste some aspects of the outside world before deciding to be baptized into the church.
schnickelfritz. mischievous child
ser gut. very good
tastes like more. delicious
Was ist letz? What’s the matter?
Wie bist du heit. how are you; said in greeting
wilkom. welcome
Wo bist du? Where are you?
Table of Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-one
Epilogue
CHAPTER ONE
Naomi Esch froze in her seat at the family table, unable to stop staring at her father. Daadi had just tossed what felt like a lightning bolt into the middle of her thirtieth birthday celebration. Around her, she could feel her siblings and their spouses stuck in equally unbelieving attitudes.
“Ach, what is wrong with all of you?” Daadi’s eyes narrowed, his beard seeming to bristle as he glared at his offspring. “This is a reason to celebrate, ain’t so?”
Lovina, her brother Elijah’s wife, was the first to recover, her calm face showing little of what she felt. “We wish you and Betty much happiness.” She bounced Amos, her two-year-old, on her lap, hushing him. “Wilkom, Betty.”
Betty Shutz, a round dumpling of a woman with a pair of shrewd brown eyes, nodded and smiled, but the glance she sent toward Naomi was cautious.
Isaiah, the youngest and most impetuous, said what everyone was thinking. “But what about Naomi? If you and Betty are marrying, what is Naomi to do?”
The question roused Naomi from her frozen state. What was she supposed to do, after fifteen years spent raising her siblings, tending the house and garden and her beehives, and taking care of Daadi?
Daadi’s gaze shifted, maybe a bit uneasily. “Naomi is a gut daughter, none better. No one would deny that. But newlyweds want to have time alone together, ja? So we…I was thinking Naomi would move in with Elijah and Lovina. They are both busy with the dry-goods store and two young kinder besides. It would be a big help to you, ja?”
Elijah and Lovina exchanged glances, and then Lovina smiled at Naomi. “Nothing would please us more than to have Naomi with us, but that is for her to say, ain’t so?”
“Denke, Lovina.” Naomi found that her stiff lips could move, after all. “But what about my beehives?”
Odd, that her thoughts had flown so quickly to her bees in the face of this shock. Or maybe not so odd. The beehives were the only thing she could call truly hers.
“I’ve already talked to Dick Holder about the hives, and he’ll be happy to give Naomi a gut price for them.” Daad spoke as if it were all settled, her life completely changed in a few short minutes.
“I will not sell the hives.” Naomi could hardly believe that strong tone was coming out of her mouth. Everyone else looked equally surprised. Maybe they’d never heard such firmness from her.
A babble of talk erupted around her as everyone seemed to have an opinion, but Naomi’s thoughts were stuck on the words Daad had used. Her future. He clearly thought he knew what that future was to be. She should move from one sibling to another, helping to raise their children, never having a home or a life of her own.
She was engaging in selfish thinking, maybe, and it was unfitting for a humble Amish person. But…
She looked around the table. Elijah, two years younger than she, whom she’d comforted when bad dreams woke him in the night. Anna and Sara, the next two in the family, who had traveled by bus with their husbands from the next county for her birthday today. She’d taught the girls everything they needed to know to be Amish women, overseen their rumspringas, seen them married to gut men they loved. And Isaiah, the baby, the one whose first stumbling steps she’d guided. Were they to be her future, as they had her past?
Much as she loved them, her heart yearned for more. Marriage might have passed her by during those years when she was busy raising her siblings, but she’d looked forward to a satisfying future, taking care of Daad, tending her hives, enjoying her part-time work at the bakery.
Amos slid down from his mother’s lap and toddled around the table to tug on Naomi’s skirt. A glance at his face told her he’d detected the strain in the air. She lifted him to her lap, running her hand down his back, murmuring soothing words. He leaned against her, relaxing, sucking on two fingers as he always did before going to sleep.
Lovina met her gaze from across the table and smiled. “Naomi is wonderful gut with children.”
“For sure,” Betty said, her first contribution to the conversation. “A widower with kinder would do well to have a wife like Naomi.”
Somehow, that comment, coming from Betty, was the last straw. Naomi had to speak now, and quickly, before the rest of her life was set in stone by the family.
“You are all ser kind to give so much thought to my life. But as dearly as I love my nieces and nephews, I have no wish to raise them. And I will not give up my beehives. So I think I must find this answer for myself.”