A Surprise for Lily (19 page)

Aaron glanced at Lily over Joseph's head. “Maybe we don't need to know those facts, but I think knowing that kind of stuff is sort of interesting. Don't you, Lily?”

“I like to learn about most things,” Lily said. Not math, but most other things.

“Me, too,” Aaron said.

Joseph stopped to bend down and tie his shoelace. Lily kept on walking and so did Aaron. When Joseph caught up with them, Lily was irked that Aaron didn't move over to let her brother walk in the middle between them.

The next day, Aaron again caught up with Lily and Joseph to walk to school, and he walked right next to Lily. It was so irritating! Aaron might not be quite as mean as he used to be, but there was no reason he needed to act so chummy with her. They were
not
friends. Why couldn't Aaron just leave her alone
and ignore her? That's what she did to him. He was invisible to her. She decided it was time to have a talk with Joseph.

The next morning, Friday, Lily caught sight of Aaron as he emerged out of the woods and started to jog over the field to catch up with them. “Joseph,” she whispered. “I don't like it when Aaron walks beside me. Stay by my side so it doesn't happen.”

“Okay,” Joseph said.

When Aaron caught up with them, he slipped in right between them like he had been doing all week. “Aaron,” Joseph said, “Lily doesn't like it when you walk beside her.”

Aaron sprang to the other side of Joseph. Lily was mortified. How embarrassing! How could Joseph be so blunt?

Later that afternoon, as soon as they were close to home and no one could overhear her, Lily scolded Joseph. “You weren't supposed to say that I didn't want Aaron to walk beside me!”

Joseph looked confused. “But that's what you said.”

“But you weren't supposed to say so! If he tries to walk beside me on Monday, don't say anything about it. I would rather walk beside him than be embarrassed like that.”

“Okay,” Joseph said, looking hopelessly confused. “But I only said what you told me.”

On Monday, Aaron caught up with them and made a point to not walk beside Lily. She was relieved. Everything was going to be fine. Then Joseph said, “Hey, Aaron. Lily wants you to walk beside her after all.”

Lily was horrified! What was wrong with Joseph?

Aaron didn't budge. He just stayed right beside Joseph. When Joseph stopped to pick up a rock, Aaron whispered to Lily, “Joseph is being a real pest, isn't he?”

Lily looked at him in surprise. Could it be that Aaron
was actually turning into . . . a nice boy? “A huge pest,” she said. It felt strange to not feel angry with Aaron Yoder about something or other. It was a very new feeling for her.

Dannie stayed in the hospital for nine long days. Mama or Papa was with him every day. When the doctor finally said he was ready to go home, Papa and Mama planned a celebration to welcome him home. Papa moved Lily's old twin size bed into the kitchen for Dannie to lie on. Mama set a little stand beside it and placed a picture book and a few of his favorite toy animals and tractor on it.

At the hospital, Papa asked Dannie for a list of store-bought food he'd like to eat, then bought every single thing on the list. Every single thing! Lily thought it might be worth staying at a hospital if it meant she could get any store-bought food she wanted. But then she thought of those doctors, walking around jabbing people with needles, and she changed her mind.

Grandma and Grandpa Miller and Aunt Susie came over to welcome Dannie home. Lily walked from window to window hoping to catch a glimpse of Mr. Tanner's car as it rolled up the driveway with Papa and Mama and Dannie in it. Finally, Grandma said, “Lily, you'll just wear yourself out pacing like that.”

Aunt Susie smiled and patted the bag she held on her lap. “You could sit and wait like I'm doing,” she said. “I don't want to be too tired to read this book to Dannie when he gets here.” She pulled
A Big Ball of String
out of the bag.

Lily hadn't planned anything for Dannie's homecoming. Maybe he would like to play with the busy book she and
Grandma had made when he had the chicken pox. Or maybe he would be hungry for a tomato. Lily's mouth watered at the thought of the big store-bought tomatoes that were waiting for Dannie. They were on his list of food. Lily loved tomatoes. She hoped she could at least get a tiny taste of one. How wonderful to have a tomato before summer started.

“They're here!” Joseph said. He ran to the door and flung it open as Papa carried Dannie up the porch steps and into the house. He placed Dannie gently on the bed they had prepared for him. He didn't look like Dannie. This boy was skinny and pale, with dark blue circles under his eyes. Then he saw Lily and gave her a toothy grin. It was Dannie! He was going to be all right.

Aunt Susie hurried over to his side and smoothed his covers. She held up the book she had brought along. “Do you want me to read to you?”

Dannie nodded. His smile grew even bigger. Aunt Susie climbed next to him on the bed and started to read. She held the book up high so Dannie could see all the pictures.

Lily thought of the tomatoes that waited in the refrigerator in the pantry. “Mama, can I go fix a tomato for Dannie?” she asked.

“Wait until he's hungry,” Mama said.

“I'm hungry now,” Dannie said.

Now Lily knew that Dannie was definitely going to be fine.

Lily picked out a tomato and sliced it carefully. Probably, Dannie wouldn't mind if she had one tiny slice. She popped a piece into her mouth and practically gagged. This tomato didn't taste anything like the ones that grew in Mama's garden every summer. It had hardly any flavor at all and the texture was odd. Mushy. Ugh. How disappointing.

Friday morning was the last day of school. It would last only a few hours—just enough time for each student to receive his report card and for Teacher Judith to give the usual “I have enjoyed all of you and can't wait until next term” talk. Of course, there would need to be time allowed for the prize to be given out for nearly perfect attendance. Finally, Lily would win something!

Lily waited patiently as each student was called up to Teacher Judith's desk and told he or she would be promoted to the next class. This year, it seemed to take forever. Finally, it was time for the announcement of the prize. Lily sat up straight in her desk. Effie glared at her. She had Effie beat by one day.

“Lily Lapp, you have earned the prize for best attendance.” Teacher Judith handed her a heavy gift, wrapped in newspaper.

Lily was so excited! She unwrapped the gift and discovered a beautiful leather-bound book with colored illustrations inside.
Treasure Island
by Robert Louis Stevenson. Even the boys were interested in it. They leaned across the aisles to get a good look at it. It was the most beautiful book Lily had ever been given. She hugged the book close to her.

“And now, class,” Teacher Judith said, “I'm sorry to say that I won't be coming back next year. I don't know who your new teacher will be, but I am sure you'll be as wonderful for her as you've been for me.”

The class froze. Even Effie wasn't privy to that news. She seemed just as surprised as everyone else. Teacher Judith stood at the door and shook each student's hand to say goodbye. Lily wasn't sure why Teacher Judith wasn't coming back to teach but had a hunch it had something to do with her lack of interest in English lessons.

She wasn't really sure if she would miss Teacher Judith or not. She wasn't a bad teacher, but she wasn't a very good teacher, either. Better than Teacher Katie, not as good as Teacher Rhoda. Lily would be worried, all summer long, about who the next teacher would be.

But she did have a beautiful new book to remember Teacher Judith. She couldn't wait to get home and read it. How wonderful! This was going to be a wonderful summer.

As Lily came into the house, Mama met her at the door and put her finger to her lips. “Dannie is sleeping.”

Lily hung her bonnet on the wall peg. She looked at Dannie, sleeping on the bed. He looked so weak and small and pale. Mama said it would take a long time for him to be the same Dannie. Most of the summer, she thought.

Lily tiptoed over to him and tucked
Treasure Island
under his pillow. He needed it more than she did.

Two Sundays later, Uncle Jacob stood up at the end of church services with an announcement: “Daniel and Rachel Lapp need our help to pay off their recent hospital bill for their son Dannie.”

Lily cringed, horrified. This was just the kind of fodder Effie Kauffman enjoyed. Her tongue flapped at both ends. She would use it to remind everyone that the Lapps were too poor to pay their bills. Lily felt so embarrassed for Papa and Mama. She glanced across the room at Papa. He didn't look at all embarrassed.

On the way home from church, Lily asked Papa why Uncle Jacob had to make such an announcement.

“Well, he said it because it's true,” Papa said. “The hospital
bill was quite costly. Mama and I have always tried to help others when they've been in need. This time, we're on the side of needing help. It's nice to be part of a community where everyone pitches in and helps each other.”

Over the next few weeks, Uncle Jacob dropped by Whispering Pines with donations for the medical bills. As expected, Lily and Joseph were shooed off to their rooms whenever Uncle Jacob came to talk, and they took their usual perches at the head of the stairs to listen. It made a dent, Lily heard Papa tell Uncle Jacob, but the bill was still quite sizeable. Papa said he wanted to go to the doctor's office to see if he could set up a payment plan so that he could pay off the bill month by month. “It will still take years,” she heard Mama say. Even from the top of the stairs, Lily could sense the worry in her voice.

The next morning, Mr. Tanner arrived to drive Papa to the doctor's office. A few hours later, Papa returned to Whispering Pines. Lily and Mama were hanging clothes on the clothesline as Papa walked over to them, grinning for all he was worth. “Rachel,” he said—and Lily could hear the relief in his voice—“the doctor wondered if I would make furniture for his house in exchange for the money we owe him.”

Mama clasped her hands together. “Daniel, that's amazing!”

The big grin was still on Papa as they walked to the house. “I thought doctors like him didn't exist anymore, but God's goodness prevailed. He made a way so we can get our bills paid.”

It felt like a new morning at Whispering Pines.

L
ily and her family had been driving in Mr. Tanner's stuffy station wagon for hours. It felt like she'd been in the car for the whole month of July. They were heading to Grandma Lapp's home in Kentucky to help sell Grandpa's things at an estate sale. Lily could hardly wait to see all her Lapp girl cousins again. She had met them at her grandfather's funeral last summer. This would be their last trip to Kentucky because everything was changing.

Uncle Ira and Aunt Tillie were moving to a new community to be closer to their married children. Grandma Lapp would be left all alone and that would never do. Papa and Mama had talked about it and invited Grandma to come live with them in Pennsylvania. Lily was thrilled when she heard that Grandma said yes!

Papa and Mama had moved all the furniture out of the living room and sewing room and into the kitchen. Dannie had
improved enough that he could sleep back up in his own bed, so at least the twin bed was gone. The kitchen had seemed enormous until Papa's big desk, a couch, two rocking chairs, and Mama's sewing machine were squeezed into it. Now the room felt small, but cozy and friendly.

By the time the sun was high in the sky, the station wagon arrived at Grandma Lapp's house. Lily was excited to see that her relatives were already there, working and talking and laughing. She was eager to find her cousin Rosie. As she opened the car door, Mama put a hand on her shoulder. “Let's go inside and say hello to Grandma before you go join your cousins.”

Grandma was frying some red beets in a pan at her wood cookstove and turned in delight when she heard Papa's voice. Several aunts were busy preparing food for lunch. Lily's eyes scanned all the delicious foods that were being prepared. But her nose wrinkled at the strong smell of the beets. She caught a glimpse of the pastries and cookies and decided she might be able to stomach a few beets if that meant she could have dessert.

As soon as Lily said hello to Grandma, she ran outside to look for Rosie and found her under a tree, sitting with the other girls. Rosie made a spot for her and she sat right down, eager to hear what the girls were talking about.

It wasn't long before Uncle Ira rang the dinner bell. Everyone went to wash up and get ready to eat. There were too many relatives to sit at a table so they gathered in the front yard for silent prayer. The boys were the first to fill their plates with food, followed by the girls. This was one of those moments when Lily wished she were a boy. By the time Lily and the rest of her same-aged girl cousins filled up their plates,
some of the bowls of food were already empty. There were still plenty of beets but Lily was delighted to see that her cousins passed them up. She sailed past the beets bowl and hurried to the bowl filled with clouds of mashed potatoes.

All afternoon, everyone pitched in to help get Grandpa's things ready for the auction. Uncle Ira and Aunt Tillie's things, too, since they were moving and giving up farming. Uncle Ira was selling all the animals except the buggy horse, all the farm machinery, and some furniture and things they didn't want to move from the house.

The next morning, Mama helped Grandma Lapp and Aunt Tillie with the food stand. All the other aunts were helping, too. There were just too many people in one place, so the girls were told they could go play. Lily, Rosie, and the rest of the little girl cousins ran out to the barn and climbed up into the loft. It would be fun to sit at the open loft door and watch the huge crowd of people who were gathering at the farm. Papa said there might be as many as one thousand people coming through the farm today. The auctioneer walked around the farm and spoke in a loud, fast, rat-a-tat voice. Crowds of people followed him along the line of farm machinery that stood at the edge of the hayfield. Long lines of people snaked by the food stand, buying fresh homemade doughnuts and lemonade.

Lily enjoyed sitting and talking with her cousins as they watched all the activity. Her cousins were much more interesting than Effie Kauffman, who talked only about Aaron Yoder and Harvey Hershberger. Her cousins talked about books and games and horses.

Rosie dangled her legs over the edge of the loft, but Lily stayed back inside. She didn't want to risk falling out. The
hayloft looked eerie. It was empty, swept clean. All the hay bales had been stacked on wagons to be sold at the auction.

The auction lasted until late afternoon. Lily watched as people loaded cows on trailers to take them to their new homes. She felt sorry for the cows and wondered if they felt sad that they had to leave their cow friends. She knew how it felt to say goodbye.

Today was another auction, but there would be no strangers at this auction—only Papa's brothers and sisters and their families. Today they would sell all of Grandpa Lapp's things and everything that Grandma Lapp no longer needed. Grandma was planning to keep only her bed, a dresser, her rocking chair, and a few of her favorite books and dishes.

Lily was amazed at how cheery Grandma seemed, even as most of her belongings were sold off. It was like a life was being washed away. “I'm so glad I'm doing this now,” Grandma said. “It's nice to be able to see what my children want to have. If this waited until after I died, I would never know.”

What a horrible thought! Lily didn't want Grandma to talk about dying. To not even think about it! Just the idea of it gave Lily the shivers.

Outside, church benches were set up as tables all over the yard. Mama, the aunts, and the older girl cousins helped clear out all the kitchen cupboards and organize things on the makeshift tables. Papa and the uncles were hard at work making ice cream—all different kinds of flavors. Lily's mouth watered at the thought of sampling every single flavor: strawberry, chocolate, butter pecan. The boy cousins pounded on
large ice chunks to crush them into small enough pieces to fit into the ice-cream freezers. Lily, Rosie, and the other little girls couldn't decide where to be! Poring over all the items being offered for sale or watching the ice-cream making.

Grandma Lapp interrupted their discussion. “Would you girls like to be in charge of making lunch today? The women don't have time to make a big meal. If you'll make us plenty of sandwiches, that would suit nicely, especially with ice cream for dessert.”

The girls followed Grandma Lapp into the kitchen where a dozen loaves of store-bought bread sat on the counter. On another counter were stacks of cheese, deli meat, and a big bowl of washed lettuce. “It's all yours, girls,” Grandma said before she left to help move more things outdoors.

Rosie, the boss of the girl cousins but a nice one, decided to create an assembly line. Lily was at one end. She took two slices of bread, spread butter on them and handed them to Rosie, who spread salad dressing on top of the butter and passed them on. Cheese, meat, lettuce. By the end of the assembly, a huge pile of delicious-looking sandwiches had been created.

Lily and Rosie went outside to tell Grandma the sandwiches were ready. The ice cream had been finished, too. Everyone gathered in the yard for prayer, then took a sandwich or two before lining up to get ice cream. Lily followed Rosie to the row of ice cream freezers. Papa and the uncles were handing out scoops of ice cream as everyone walked by. Papa gave Lily a big scoop of strawberry ice cream, Uncle Ira gave her a big scoop of butter pecan, another uncle gave her a big scoop of chocolate, then peach, vanilla, cherry, blueberry, mixed berry, and finally, mint. Lily's plate was heavy with ice cream! How fun!

The girls sat on the grass in the shade of a big maple tree. Lily started eating. And eating. She couldn't decide which kind of ice cream was the best. Soon, she started to feel full. She ate slower and slower. So did her cousins. There were still huge scoops of melting ice cream left! How was she ever supposed to eat all of this?

Rosie put down her spoon and rubbed her tummy. “I can't eat one more bite.”

“But what are we going to do with it?” Lily asked. They had all been taught to eat everything on their plate. Wasting food was a terrible thing.

Rosie looked around the yard. “Let's dump it in the outhouse.”

The girls followed Rosie to the four-seater outhouse. They locked the door on the inside and scraped their plates down the holes. It was a shame, but what else could they do? When they were finished, they opened the door and stepped outside. There stood Grandma. She looked at the girls and their empty plates. Then she smiled. “Those uncles gave you all too much ice cream, didn't they?”

“Oh Grandma!” Lily said. “Don't be mad. We just couldn't eat another bite.”

“Give the plates to me and I'll take them inside,” Grandma said.

As Lily handed her empty plate to Grandma, she was so happy to think of her coming to live with them. Grandma might be old, but she understood children.

Papa and Mama told Lily she could buy something today as a keepsake and remembrance of Grandpa and Grandma.
Lily's first thought was to buy a book. Her grandparents had rows and rows of books. But the next table held sets of pretty dishes. And the one after that had brightly colored fabrics.

As Lily wandered from table to table, the auction began. Uncle Ira was the auctioneer. He spoke slower than yesterday's professional auctioneer. For the first time she could actually understand what was getting sold! Uncle Ira started with the furniture, then the pretty dishes that Lily had been considering. Papa's sisters snatched those up. So far, everything had gotten much too expensive for Lily. Uncle Ira held up a book for everyone to see it. “Here's a favorite from our childhood,” he said. “I'll pay thirty dollars for it. Anyone else care to make a bid?”

“Fifty!” Papa shouted.

Lily's hands flew to her mouth. What was Papa thinking?! To spend fifty dollars for one little book? Mama would not be happy with him.

But the bids kept on going. The price of that book went higher and higher. Everyone stopped to listen as the bidding continued. Two hundred dollars. Three hundred. Lily loved to read, but no book could be that interesting. And yet the price kept on rising! Four hundred dollars, four hundred twenty, four hundred twenty five, four hundred thirty. Going . . . going . . . gone! The book was sold to Uncle Ira for four hundred and thirty dollars. Another uncle called out, “Ira, you'd better read that book every day for the rest of your life to get your money's worth out of it.”

Ira grinned, pleased, placed the book beside him, and went on to the next book. He held it up. “Can I get ten dollars?” No one said anything. “Can I get five?” Still no one spoke.
Lily looked at the money in her hand that Papa had given her. “I'll pay three dollars,” she said.

“I have three dollars,” Uncle Ira said. “Anyone want to bid four?”

Still, no one said anything. “Going . . . going . . . gone! Sold to Lily for three dollars.”

Lily was so pleased! She had bought her first thing at an auction. Lily paid for her book as the auction continued. Papa bought a cuckoo clock that he remembered from his boyhood, Grandpa's hand drill, and an ugly chocolate brown and royal blue quilt. Mama whispered to her, “That quilt used to be on Papa's bed.” When the auction was over, everyone gathered their things, said their goodbyes to Grandma, and started for home.

Everyone helped load the last of Grandma's things into a little trailer. Mr. Tanner's station wagon would haul the trailer back to Cloverdale with them. Lily was excited. It would be fun having Grandma living with them.