Going Home (5 page)

Faith smiled and bent to give her daughter a kiss. It was seriously doubtful that Melinda would be awake early enough to milk any cows, but it made Faith feel hopeful about things, knowing her father had shown an interest in Melinda. Too bad he hadn’t taken much interest in Faith when she was a child.

As Melinda drifted off to sleep, Faith lay on her side of the bed, wondering how she would handle being separated from her daughter when the time came for her to leave. Would she be welcome to return for visits? How long would she need to stay here in order for Melinda to fully adjust?

N
oah looked forward to going to church at his friend Isaac Troyer’s place. Isaac and his wife, Ellen, had been married four years and already had two small children. Noah enjoyed spending time with other people’s children. He figured that was a good thing, since it wasn’t likely he’d ever have any of his own.

“Got to be married to have kinner,” Noah muttered as he scrambled a batch of eggs for breakfast.

“Couldn’t quite make out what you were saying, but I’m guessing you were talking to yourself again, jah?”

Noah turned at the sound of his mother’s voice. He hadn’t realized she had come into the kitchen. “I guess I was,” he admitted, feeling a sense of warmth cover his cheeks.

“You’ve got to quit doing that, son.” Mom’s hazel-colored eyes looked perky this morning, and Noah was glad she seemed
to be feeling better. Yesterday she’d looked tired and acted kind of shakylike.

His mother shuffled over to their gas-operated refrigerator, withdrew a slab of bacon, and handed it to Noah. “Some of your daed’s best.”

He chuckled. “All of Pop’s hogs are the best. At least he thinks so.”

Mom’s head bobbed up and down, and a few brown hairs sprinkled with gray peeked out from the bun she wore under her small, white head covering. “My Levi would sure enough say so.”

“You’re right about that. Pop gets up early every morning, rain or shine, and heads out to feed his pigs. Truth is, I think he enjoys talking to the old sows more than he does me.”

Mom’s forehead wrinkled as she set three plates on the table. “Now don’t start with that, Noah. It’s not your daed’s fault that you don’t share his interest in raising hogs.”

“That’s not the problem, Mom, and you know it.” Noah grabbed a butcher knife from the wooden block on the cupboard and cut several slices of bacon; then he slapped them into the frying pan. The trouble between him and Pop went back to when Noah was a young boy. He was pretty sure his father thought he was a sissy because he liked to cook and help Mom with some of the inside chores. That was really dumb, as far as Noah was concerned. Would a sissy work up a sweat planting a bunch of trees? Would a sissy wear calluses on his hands from pruning, shaping, and cutting the Christmas pines English people in the area bought every December?

Mom took out a container of fresh goat’s milk from the refrigerator. “Let’s talk about something else, shall we? Your daed will be in soon from doing his chores, and I don’t want you all riled up when he gets here.”

Noah grunted and flipped the sizzling bacon. “I’m not riled, Mom. Just stating facts as I see ’em.”

“Jah, well, you have a right to your opinion.”

“Glad you think so. Now if you want to hear more about what I think—”

“Your daed loves you, Noah, and that’s the truth of it.”

Noah nodded. “I know, and I love him, too. I also realize that Pop doesn’t like it because I’d rather be in the kitchen than out slopping hogs with him, so I’m trying to accept things as they are.”

Mom sighed. “None of my boys ever enjoyed the pigs the way that husband of mine does.”

Noah realized it was past time for a change of subject. “I baked a couple of lemon sponge cakes while you and Pop went to town yesterday. One with sugar and one without.”

“Are you planning to give one away or set both out on the table at the meal after our preaching service?”

Noah pushed the bacon around in the pan, trying to get it to brown up evenly. “The cake I made with a sugar substitute is for us to have here at home. I figured I would give the one made with sugar to someone who might need a special touch today.”

“Guess God will show you who when the time is right.”

“Jah. That’s how it usually goes.”

“I just hope you don’t develop baker’s asthma from working around flour so much.”

Noah snickered. “I don’t think you have to worry none. That usually only happens to those who work in bakeries and such. One would have to be around flour a lot more than me to develop baker’s asthma.”

Pop entered the kitchen just as Noah was dishing up the bacon and scrambled eggs. Noah’s father had dark brown hair, with close-set eyes that matched his hair color, but his beard had been nearly gray since his late fifties. Now Pop was starting to show his age in other areas, too. His summer-tanned face was creased with wrinkles, he had several dark splotches on his hands and arms, and he walked with a slower gait these days.

“Something smells mighty good this morning,” Pop said, sniffing the air. “Must have made some bacon.”

Noah’s mother pointed to the platter full of bacon and eggs. “Our son has outdone himself again, Levi. He made sticky buns, too.” She nodded toward the plate in the center of the table, piled high with rolls. Noah had learned to make many sweet treats using a sugar substitute so Mom could enjoy them without affecting her diabetes, and he knew how much she appreciated it.

“You taking the leftover sticky buns to church?” his father asked after he’d washed his hands at the sink.

“Guess I could.” Noah smiled. “I also made a sugar-free lemon sponge cake.” Noah made no mention of the cake that he planned to give away. Pop liked lemon so well, he might want that one, too.

Pop smacked his lips. “Sounds good to me.”

Noah smiled to himself. His dad might not like him spending so much time in the kitchen, but he sure did enjoy the fruits of
Noah’s labor. And Pop hadn’t said one word about Noah not helping out with the hogs. Maybe it was a good sign. This might be the beginning of a great day.

“I can’t believe how much our two boys are growing,” Barbara Zook said to her husband, David, as they headed down the road in his open buggy toward Isaac and Ellen Troyer’s home. She glanced over her shoulder at their two young sons. “I made a pair of trousers for Aaron but two months ago, and already they’re too short for his long legs.”

David smiled and nodded. “Jah, it won’t be long and both our boys will be grown, married, and on their own. Someday we’ll be retired, and Aaron can take over the harness shop.”

She reached across the seat and gently pinched his arm. “Don’t you be saying such things. I want to keep our kinner little for as long as I can.”

He shook his head. “Now, Barbara, you know that’s not possible, so you may as well accept the changes as they come.”

She released a sigh. “I can accept some changes, but others aren’t so easy.”

“Are you thinking of anything in particular?”

“Jah. I was thinking about my old friend Faith. This morning as I was looking through the bottom drawer of my dresser, I came across a handkerchief Faith had given me on my twelfth birthday. The sight of it made me feel kind of sad.” Barbara blinked a couple of times as the remembrance of her friend
saying good-bye washed over her like a harsh, stinging rain. “I haven’t heard from Faith in a good many years, but I still remember to pray for her every day.”

David reached for Barbara’s hand and gave her fingers a gentle squeeze. “Prayer is the key to each new day and the lock for every night, jah?”

“That’s right, and I’ll keep praying for my friend whether I hear from her again or not.”

David smiled. “I feel blessed to have married someone as caring as you.”

Barbara leaned her head on his shoulder. “I’m the one who’s been blessed, husband.”

Faith felt as fidgety as a bumblebee on a hot summer day. She hadn’t been this nervous since the first time she had performed one of her comedy routines in front of a bunch of strangers. She and Melinda sat in the back of her parents’ open buggy, along with young Susie. Faith’s sisters, Grace Ann and Esther, had ridden to church with their brothers John and Brian.

Faith reached up and touched her head covering to be sure it was firmly in place. She’d been in such a hurry this morning, having to get herself dressed in one of Grace Ann’s plain dresses and Melinda in one of Susie’s, that she hadn’t taken the time to do up her hair properly. Rather than being parted down the middle, twisted, and pulled back in a bun, she’d brushed her hair straight back and quickly secured it in a bun, then hurried
downstairs to help with breakfast. She would be meeting others in their congregation today, not to mention facing Bishop Martin again.

Thinking about the bishop caused Faith to reflect on her conversation with him. She’d left the bishop, as well as her family, with the impression that she had come home to stay and had given no hint that she planned to go back to her life as an entertainer.

You won’t have your daughter with you
, her conscience reminded.
Can you ever be truly happy without Melinda?
Faith shook her head as though the action might clear away the troubling thoughts. She wouldn’t think about that now. She would deal with leaving Melinda when the time came. For now, Faith’s only need was to make everyone in her Amish community believe she had come home to stay.

Soon they were pulling into the Troyers’ yard, and Faith looked around in amazement. Isaac Troyer’s house and barn were enormous, and a huge herd of dairy cows grazed in the pasture nearby. Papa had mentioned something about the Troyers’ dairy farm doing well, but she’d had no idea it would be so big.

Faith let her mind wander back to the days when she had attended the one-room schoolhouse not far down the road. Isaac Troyer, her brother John, and Noah Hertzler had all been friends. She remembered Noah as being the shy one of the group. Faith could still see his face turning as red as a radish over something one of the scholars at school had said. He’d hardly spoken more than a few words, and then it was only if someone talked to him first. Noah hadn’t been outspoken or full of wisecracks the
way Faith had always been, that was for sure. She would have to watch her mouth now that she was back at home. Her jokes and fooling around wouldn’t be appreciated.

I wonder if Noah’s still around, and if so, is the poor man as shy as he used to be?

“You getting out or what?”

Faith jerked her head at the sound of her father’s deep voice. He leaned against the buggy, his dark eyes looking ever so serious. He was a hard worker, and he could be equally hard when it came to his family. As a little girl, Faith had always been a bit afraid of him. She wasn’t sure if it was his booming voice or his penetrating eyes. One thing for sure, Faith knew Papa would take no guff from any of his children. The way he looked at her right now made her wonder if he could tell what was on her mind. Did he know how much she dreaded going to church?

Faith stepped down from the buggy and turned to help Melinda and Susie out. Chattering like magpies, the little girls ran toward the Troyers’ house. Faith was left to walk alone, and as she headed toward the Troyers’ house, she shuddered, overcome by the feeling that she was marching into a den of hungry lions. What if she and Melinda weren’t accepted? What if either one of them said or did something wrong today?

Faith drew in a deep breath and glanced down at her unadorned, dark green dress. It felt strange to be wearing Plain clothes again, and she wondered if she looked as phony on the outside as she was on the inside. Melinda hadn’t seemed to mind putting on one of her aunt Susie’s simple dresses. She’d even made some comment about it being fun to play dress-up.

Oh, to be young again. I hope Melinda keeps her cheerful attitude in the days ahead
. Faith kept her gaze downward, being mindful of the uneven ground and sharp stones in the Troyers’ driveway. She had taken only a few steps when she bumped into someone. Lifting her head, Faith found herself staring into a pair of brown eyes that were so dark they almost looked black. She shifted her body quickly to the right, but the man with thick chestnutbrown hair moved to his left at the same time. With a nervous laugh, she swung to the left, just as he transferred his body to the right.