Seasons of Sugarcreek 02. Spring's Renewal (12 page)

“She’s here,” Clara’s mother said on Sunday morning when they were packing the buggy to go to church. “Timothy’s sweetheart Ruby arrived yesterday.”

“Oh. Well, I hope she enjoys her stay,” she murmured as casually as she could manage.

“Several people saw Tim and Ruby at the Sugarcreek Inn. I heard he looked very smitten.”

Clara fought to keep her expression neutral. “That is
gut
. She traveled a long way to see him.”

Her mother narrowed her eyes as she grabbed her cape from the hook by the door and fastened the hook and eye closure. “Perhaps they will declare themselves while she is here. That would be exciting.”

“Yes.” Clara knew her mother was saying those things just to get her feelings in knots.

“If your paths cross, make sure you don’t say too much to him after church. We don’t want her to feel jealous.”

“Muddah, I will be fine. Stop acting like I’m a child.”

“I just don’t want you to embarrass yourself.”

“I won’t. Let’s go.”

Silence filled the buggy as they left the driveway and began the trip to the Millers’ home, the place for church that week. After they’d only ridden half a mile, small drops of rain began peppering the windshield.

Daisy, their buggy horse, shook her head a bit as she continued on.

“It’s supposed to rain all day,” her mother said gloomily.

As if on cue, the drops became bigger. “I think you’re right.”

“We need the rain, though. Did you notice the peppers and the zucchinis? They’re not near as big as they usually are by April.”

“Yes, the rain will help them.”

Forty-five minutes later, they pulled into the Millers’ yard. Clara yanked on Daisy’s reins, then raised the brake so her mother could get out in front of their barn. After her mother alighted, she directed Daisy over to an area where the rest of the buggies were parked. Once settled, she got out as well and made sure Daisy was securely tied to the hitching post.

By now the rain was falling harder. The sudden storm was creating an ocean of mud around the Millers’ farm. Red dirt and clay mixed in with the gravel to create an oozing mess. Clara shook her head in irritation. Now she would have quite a chore that afternoon, cleaning up her boots, Daisy’s hooves and legs, and the buggy’s wheels.

As the raindrops continued to fall, she picked up her pace, keeping her eyes to the ground in an effort to dodge the puddles.

“Clara, hold on,” Gretta called out. “I’ve got an umbrella. Come here and get underneath it with me.”

“Gladly!”

Once they were under the umbrella, Gretta hooked Clara’s arm and started chatting. “I’m so glad to see you. I’ve been worried about you.”

“Why?”

“Once Ruby arrived…well, I wondered how you’d take it.”

“I haven’t seen them together. But it’s okay. We’re simply friends, you know.”

“I know. But still…” Her voice drifted off as they reached the covered area in front of the barn’s main entrance. After shaking her umbrella, Gretta set it along the wall with the dozen others, then faced Clara again. “I guess we better not talk about Tim anymore.”

“There’s no need to talk of him at all. Really,” Clara said, “Tim means nothing to me.”

Gretta narrowed her eyes. “I see.”

Clara looked away, realizing that her adamant protests did just the opposite of what she’d intended. Now it seemed like Tim meant a whole lot more to her than ever.

Which was probably the truth.

The barn’s vast interior was a fine place to gather. Though, as usual, it was terribly noisy. Scattered about were groups of adults and their children, anxiously catching up on two weeks’ worth of news and gossip.

After Gretta walked to her husband’s side, Clara walked to some of her students who’d been waving her over. They all hugged her like she was a long lost-friend. One of her first-graders had lost a tooth. Another’s cat had a litter of kittens.

As she always did, Clara found herself caught up in their excitement. “Perhaps your mother could bring the kittens at the end of school one day,” she offered. “I’d love to see them.”

Just as two of the little girls clapped with glee, Anson tapped her on the shoulder. “Teacher, look who I brought to meet you. Ruby Lee.”

She barely had time to school her features into polite interest before Ruby was holding out her hand and greeting her.

“Hello,” she said in response. “I’m glad to know you.”

“Danke.”
Ruby Lee nodded politely. “I understand you are the schoolteacher.”

“I am.”

“Anson here says you know his family well.”

As Anson looked up at her and grinned, Clara looked at him fondly. “That is true. I went to school with Joshua and Judith, and now I teach Anson, Carrie, and Maggie.”

“But Tim’s talked of you, too. I’m not quite sure how your paths have crossed as much as they have.”

“He’s come to my classroom to help some.”

Ruby’s eyes narrowed, then obviously not seeing any need to be jealous, her face transformed into a more genuine smile. “Tim has always been
bamhatsich
—kind. That’s really nice that he’s become your friend.”

Ruby had a way of talking that made it sound as if Tim had been feeling sorry for her. Pitying her. Clara was taken aback. “Yes. He is a nice person.”

“My community asked me to consider teaching, but I told them I couldn’t possibly do that. Not with a wedding to plan.”

“You’re gettin’ married? When?”

Clara was appalled. “Anson, that was rude.”

“Oh, I don’t mind you asking me about that, Anson,” Ruby murmured as a gleam of warmth appeared in her eyes. “Nothing’s set yet, but of course Tim and I will be saying our vows soon.”

“I didn’t realize you two were so close to being married,” Clara murmured.

Ruby looked at Clara. “Tim’s so shy, I don’t think he wanted to tell everyone. But it will happen.”

“Congratulations.”

“
Danke
.” Ruby looked around with a frown. “Services are about to begin. I best go take my seat near Judith.”

Clara stood motionless for a moment, watching her walk away. After a good, long moment, Anson tapped her arm again. “Yes?”

“Lean down,” he instructed. When she did, he whispered, “I don’t think she’s telling the truth.”

Ruby Lee definitely seemed more sure of things than Tim. But of course, it wasn’t her place to judge. “Let’s not worry about that. It’s none of our business.”

“But, teacher—”

“Let’s go sit down, Anson, before we cause a scene.”

She looked around. Her mother was already sitting in the first row. Clara had no desire to sit so far up front. With a smile, she scooted next to Miriam and her mother and tried to relax. It was important to listen to God’s word and count her blessings.

But it was difficult to do. No matter how hard she tried, all she could think about was Ruby’s knowing looks…and the news that Tim was most definitely taken.

Gossip being what it was, several other girls were looking her way. Some were even whispering about Ruby.

Clara had no desire to join in the discussions. In fact she was so rattled by Ruby’s words that she hoped she wouldn’t have to converse with anyone anytime soon.

As she sat with the other women, Clara hoped the day’s church service would be the longest one ever.

There was an uproar in her classroom.
“Kinner!”
Clara called out, clapping her hands for emphasis. “
Kinner
, it is time to take your seats and be quiet.”

Like molasses, each student grudgingly went to his or her desk. One by one, they sat. But that was where their obedience ended. No spirals were getting pulled out. Neither were pencils.

She cleared her throat and did her best to look intimidating. “
Shoolahs
, it is time to start our day, yes? Get your desks organized.”

After a moment, they complied, but not before staring at each other. Some of the students were grinning, too.

Clara looked from one to the other with a growing sense of concern. Something was going on. Something mighty strange, indeed.

Perhaps it was the rain outside? Maybe it was making them especially squirrelly. Well, that couldn’t be helped. “Let’s begin our day.” She pointed to the calendar on the back wall. “Now, who would like to tell us today’s date and weather?”

But instead of raising their hands, the children only stared at her with expectant eyes. Waiting and watching.

But waiting for what? She had no earthly idea.

Clara looked from one child to the other. What was going on?

Anson finally solved the mystery. “Miss Slabaugh, aren’t ya going to ask James if any postcards came to his mailbox on Saturday?”

Clara relaxed. Ah. They were excited about their postcard project. “How many did we receive in the mail on Saturday, James?”

“Four.”

“Four? Well, isn’t that something. Please bring them up. And, children, let’s all gather around our United States map, shall we?”

Far more quickly, the children moved to the other side of the classroom and sat.

Silently, they watched James as he pulled the cards out of a folder and walked to her side. When he handed them to her, his expressive face raged with emotion. She read embarrassment and a bit of excitement there.

A slight sense of foreboding tickled her stomach. What did he know that she didn’t?

Her hands curved around the cards. She looked at the first, from Minnesota. That photo showed children playing in the snow. New Hampshire’s photo was lovely, with its depiction of the mountains.

South Carolina had a beautiful picture of the beach on the front.

She flipped again. Then almost dropped all the cards into her lap.

There, staring right back at her, were three dancing girls, standing on top of a brightly written
“Nevada.”

Dancing girls! Doing her best to look calm and collected, she eyed them more closely. They wore outfits of red and gold sewn from a sparkly material. Their stomachs were bare, as was much of the rest of their bodies. High heels made their legs look long and lean. Bright red feathers in their pinned-up hair were outlandish and fierce. By all accounts, she should be scandalized.

But it was their expressions that drew her eye. Yes, their faces were painted, but there was a joy in their eyes that made Clara’s heart contract a bit.

Privately, she thought she’d never seen more beautiful women.

Nervous laughter drifted through the room as her scholars waited for her to make a comment. All twenty-four pairs of eyes watched her every expression. Never before had she felt so exposed.

Clara scanned the group. James, in particular, looked full of mirth. Yes, he was very much enjoying this bit of embarrassment.

Obviously, they all were expecting her to be shocked and dismayed by the sight of such women.

She was.

But other emotions flew through her as well. Envy and jealousy were also there. Those two painful emotions that she’d ruthlessly pushed away since she was six and had become forever scarred. In spite of her acceptance with her looks, after all this time…she still wished she looked different.

Wished she looked different to others as well.

Slowly, she set the postcards down and walked in front of her desk. “
Danke
, James, for collecting these cards for me. It looks like we’ll have four new places to mark on our United States map.”

Several little girls gasped. Anson’s eyes widened. James’s eyes narrowed.

But it was little Kathryn who blurted out what had to be in everyone’s mind. “But Teacher! Wait! Aren’t you gonna say something? Those women had no clothes on!”

Well, she supposed that it would have been too much to hope for a quick and easy end to their discussion about the postcards for the day. Schooling her features as best she could, Clara looked at the scantily clad women up and down. “Hmm. I’m afraid you’re mistaken, Kathryn. They do have on clothes.”

“But not much.” Little Kathryn looked at the other children for support. “Not enough.”

Two boys in the back snickered.

Clara sighed. “Well, I suppose we better discuss this, then. James, has everyone already seen the picture?”

Uneasiness flickered in his brown eyes. “Maybe.”

“Oh, just tell her the truth, James.” Anson rolled his eyes. “Teacher, he showed it to everyone when they walked in the door today. Even the little ones.”

“Ah. I see.” She pinned New Hampshire’s postcard on the map to gain some time. What should she do?

The kids were definitely waiting for a reaction from her. What did everyone expect of her?

Shock. Anger. Embarrassment. Most likely, their parents were waiting for that as well. Maybe a few would be angry with her. Here, by widening their horizons, she’d brought the children in contact with everything their community tried to protect them from.

Yes, if she tore up that postcard and talked about the evils of dressing with next to no clothes on and painting a face, most likely everyone would be relieved. It was her duty to be a Christian woman. It was her duty to reinforce the rules that their church and their community believed in.

And for every day before, she’d done that.

But as she felt that postcard in her hand, she knew that in this instance, it was something she couldn’t do. Even more importantly, she felt that the Lord was giving her an opportunity too…to share what lay inside her heart.

“James, what was it about the postcard that you found so appalling?”

After a moment’s pause, he chuckled. “The way they look, of course! Those there are terrible women.”

Holding up the card, she scanned the photo again, and then turned it so it faced the class. “I’m not so sure these women here would care for that description.”

“But—”

“Let’s face the truth, James. Do we know they are terrible? Without value?”

“No, but—”

She widened her eyes. “I, for one, don’t know them at all.”

“You’re not supposed to know them!” one of her girls in the front row called out. “Miss Slabaugh, don’tcha see? They’re
fancy
women.”

Several nodded. “We should throw that postcard away, Miss Slabaugh,” Anson said. “We shouldn’t be lookin’ at pictures like that.”

“Is that what your mother said?”

A faint blush colored his cheeks. “No. I mean, she doesn’t know about it.”

“Ah. Well, when I look at this, I wonder what these women’s lives must be like. Very different from ours, yes?”

Hesitantly, a few nodded.

“Let’s read the back. Whoever sent the card wrote us a letter. Maybe this will give us some clues about them.”

When a few
kinner
leaned forward, she paused. “Or, have you all already read the postcard, too? James, when you showed everyone the photograph, did you take the time to read them the note, too?”

Sheepishly, James shook his head.

“Ah. Well, let’s read it now, shall we?

“‘Thank you for writing to our state. Your letter was passed to me from a member of our tourism bureau. Since I truly love to travel our great country, I asked to write back to you. There are many things to love about Nevada. We have deserts that stretch farther than your eyes can see. We have the Hoover Dam, a marvel of modern machinery. We have the glitter of big cities, where many people come to visit, to experience new things. Perhaps I should have sent you a photo of one of those things.

“However, I thought this particular postcard might capture my home the best. These showgirls are bright and lively, and I’ve always thought they had a mischievous glint in their eyes. That, to me, suits Nevada, and my city, Las Vegas, to a T. Las Vegas is bright and lively and different…and not for everyone. But, perhaps…much could be said about other places, too?

“In any case, best of luck on your project. Sincerely, Melody Brock.’”

A roomful of students stared at her in surprise. Mentally, she gave thanks to the pen pal who had taken the time to write. She had given them a golden opportunity to discuss the dangers of judging a book by its cover!

“Ah.” Clara cleared her throat. “Well, I have to say that I enjoyed this woman’s note. Just like our Sugarcreek, Las Vegas isn’t for everyone. But it does sound interesting to me. I wouldn’t mind getting to learn more about a place filled with so many things that are bright and shiny and new.”

Anson winced. “But the girls—”

“We don’t know them. Maybe they aren’t nice women. But maybe they are. I sure don’t want to judge them based on what they’re wearing.” She winked. “Besides, something tells me that they don’t wear these fancy costumes all day.”

“But—”

“Anson, they are not Amish. That, I know. They have different values. But we can’t hold it against them. That wouldn’t be very Christian, now, would it?” Choosing her next words carefully, she continued: “Don’t you all ever wish the
Englischers
who see us in our buggies or in our shops would care to get to know us better? Some outsiders think we are none too smart.”

“I’m smart!”

“
Jah
, that is true, Kathleen. You are smart, indeed. All of you are. And you are smart enough to know that it’s not right to judge a person by only outward looks. Sometimes when you do that, you miss out on a lot.”

Stunned silence met her. She hoped she’d given them a lot to think about. Oh, her heart was sure thinking about other things, too. How she wished that some of the men in her community would one day overlook her scars and see the rest of her.

That the people who were blessed with pretty skin and lovely limbs wouldn’t take them for granted.

But that was all too close to home. Handing the rest of the postcards to one of her eldest students, she said, “Let’s read the rest of our mail and pin them up on our map. Then, I think, we had best work on spelling.”

James frowned. “My
mamm
won’t like you putting up those dancing girls on our wall.”

It was too late to second-guess herself. Especially since she’d just presented a mini-lesson about not listening to other people’s thoughts about what was good and bad. “Then I guess she won’t. But it’s time to move on now. Now, who would like to read the postcard from South Carolina?”

As ten hands went up, Clara breathed a sigh of relief. Perhaps this impromptu lesson didn’t create much of a disturbance, after all.

Later that day, when she was alone in the classroom, Clara looked at the postcards again. The colorful collection drew her eyes time and again during the day.

She so enjoyed looking at pictures of the mountains and beaches. The photo of the sand dunes in Indiana had been a big surprise.

But her eyes kept sweeping back to the trio of women in red. Now that she was alone, she stared at them.

Instead of pretending not to notice all the skin that was showing, she compared it to her own. She admired their flawless shoulders. The way their right arms were finely muscled and covered in smooth skin.

With the way their cheeks were perfect and lovely.

Quietly, she organized her desk and then went around the room and picked up a few stray pieces of trash.

She fully expected to have a visit from an irate parent very soon. The community had most definitely not hired her to pin up photos of dancing girls on the schoolhouse walls.

And when the children went home and talked about how she hadn’t painted the women with scarlet words, why some would not appreciate that at all.

Yes, she was surely about to be in a heap of trouble. But in spite of all that, she had no regrets.

Except, perhaps, the feelings of envy that had flashed over her when she’d first gazed at the trio of beautiful women. Just for a brief moment, she’d wondered what it would feel like to be beautiful…both inside and out.

That, of course, wasn’t right. No one should ever be that vain. So full of pride or envy.

When she looked at the clock, she’d realized that an hour had already passed. So quickly! For the first time ever, she left her book bag on top of her chair. Already she knew she wasn’t going to work that evening.

Only taking her lunch basket and her key, she carefully locked the door and started home. A faint breeze fluttered her dress. The dark clouds overhead warned that rain was on its way.

However, she didn’t care. No, right at that moment, she felt free and pleased with herself and just a little bit daring.

She knew from experience that there would be plenty of time for regrets later.