The Preacher's Bride: A Golden Valley Story (Brides of Birch Creek Book 6)

by Laura D. Bastian

  “How many people live here in Birch Creek?” Amelia asked. “I’m sure there were more than two hundred people at the gathering last night.”

  “Yes, those that could make it. There is around another fifty more in the general area, though they live far enough out that they couldn’t come. The train station has brought more people out here, though with the farm land and grazing land around, many of the folks move out to the surrounding areas. When we have the Founders Day, there’s likely twice as many people who come to celebrate.”

  “Do you visit them all?” Amelia asked.

  “I try to help anyone who is in need. Most people are happy to have a visit, though not all come to worship with us. Everyone is kind enough whether they come to church or not.”

  “That’s good to know.” Amelia walked with him for a few moments, then asked. “Tell me about the sheriff. Does he keep busy here? Are there a lot of issues with those who would cause trouble?”

  “Not much. We did have a few ruffians that caused some trouble a while back. The trouble makers are usually just passing through. No one who lives here in Birch Creek is anything to worry about. Folks here are always sure to help another when needed. In fact, not long ago, everyone got together to build the school house. Made it nice that it could be built so quick and everyone pitched in with some money to purchase the materials for it. A few groups were able to donate more than others, but those who had no money to give donated their time to the building and the set up.”

  “How wonderful,” Amelia said. “I’m glad to know I’ve moved to a good town.”

  “There have been some who worry that the larger it grows, the more difficult it will be to keep it as safe and peaceful as it is now. I suppose there is something to that worry, but with how good everyone is to each other, I think we could keep it that way if everyone does their part.”

  “Following the golden rule and keeping the commandments we’re taught in the Bible will definitely help the folks here to stay happy and good to each other.” Amelia looked at him. “I’m pleased to see how serious you are about your service here. It is clear you are a good man.”

  Benjamin gave her a partial bow. “Thank you for your confidence in me. I hope I can live up to it.”

  Amelia smiled softly. Once again, he impressed her with his good attitude and his humility. They didn’t speak again for a while as they walked until they neared a home that looked a little worse for wear.

  “This is where Mrs. Elizabeth Crane and her children and mother live.”

  Amelia glanced at Benjamin before they crossed the threshold of wooden fence that had fallen in places. “How long ago did her husband pass?”

  “Not quite a year,” Benjamin said.

  “That would be so difficult,” Amelia said.

  Benjamin only nodded as they approached the door and when they knocked, the sounds of a young child inside was followed by an older woman’s voice gently quieting him. The door opened and Amelia smiled at the woman.

  Benjamin took the lead and introduced them more officially than had happened at the celebration last night. Amelia remembered briefly having chatted with the woman for a few minutes before she was joined by a few other people.

  “What a pleasure to have you come to visit,” Elizabeth said. “We were just getting ready to start dinner. Would you like to join us?”

  Amelia met the woman’s tired eyes. She knew there wasn’t a lot of food to spare, but Elizabeth’s offer was given out of kindness. Amelia wasn’t sure if she should accept in order to be polite or decline to prevent them from experiencing more hardship. With a short glance at the widow’s mother, Amelia was certain they didn’t have enough to spare so she smiled and held out her basket.

  “I appreciate your offer,” Amelia said. “However, I have asked Reverend Morrison to take me around the area tonight to show me where everyone lives. I have so much to still do at home that I dare not stop for more than a moment or two. I hope it would be all right if we came another time.”

  The look of relief in Elizabeth’s eyes was enough for Amelia to continue on her new course. “Where I came from, it was customary to share something from our garden as a trade. I see you have some lovely flowers and I wondered if I might stop by sometime and gather some seeds. I’m sorry to say, the poor Reverend’s house is in need of some color.”

  Benjamin, standing to the side of her seemed to stiffen and Amelia just gave him a quick smile before turning her attention back to Elizabeth and her mother still standing near the doorway.

  Elizabeth smiled. “Of course. Whatever kind of flower you like, feel free to gather the seeds, or you could even dig up a few plants as a start if you needed.”

  Amelia smiled and took a short step backward to indicate they wouldn’t be staying. “That would be wonderful. I just love the color of your vine of sweet peas growing along the fence. I think I might take some of those. It will be a day or two before I have the area cleared, so I’ll stop by once I get a good place ready to plant them. But I do hope you’ll take these tomatoes today since I wanted to offer a fair trade.”

  “Tomatoes?” The voice of a girl about four or five spoke from behind Elizabeth. “Ours didn’t grow very good. Mama said the rabbits got most of em.”

  “Oh no,” Amelia said. “That’s too bad. I have an idea. What if you came to our place every now and again? You can help me pick some weeds since there are just so many of them I can hardly keep up, and you can have some tomatoes as a thank you.”

  “Can I, Mama?” the little girl asked.

  “Please excuse Lucy’s manners.” Elizabeth shook her head with a hint of embarrassment.

  “Her manners are just right,” Amelia said. “I love how she checked with you for permission. You are obviously raising a hardworking and sweet little girl. I’d be happy to have Lucy’s help if you can spare her for a bit now and then.”

  Elizabeth smiled at her daughter, then at Amelia. “That would be very kind of you.”

  “Now, if you’ll excuse us, I’ll have Reverend Morrison continue showing me around the area. It was so lovely seeing you again. I’ll come back by in a day or two to gather some flower seeds, then I’ll show your sweet girl how to get to my house so she can help me with my tomatoes.”

  “Thank you,” Elizabeth said. She gave a nod of farewell to Benjamin then ushered her girl, now holding a few large tomatoes, into the house while Amelia took Benjamin’s arm and turned away from the house.

  ***

  Benjamin looked down at where Amelia’s hand rested on his arm and once they were far enough from the house they wouldn’t be overheard, he asked, “Why did you insist we leave in such a hurry? They wanted to invite us in. This is the reason I brought you with so you could get to know the folks here in town.”

  Amelia looked at him, her eyes full of something he didn’t understand. She looked straight ahead where they were walking before replying. “I didn’t want to impose, especially as they were preparing their dinner. It’s obvious they don’t have a lot, and feeding two extra mouths would have been difficult on them.”

  Benjamin nodded. He hadn’t really thought of that. He’d eaten with all the families in the area at one time or another. He had never thought of how it might have been inconvenient to them. The way Amelia had easily changed the subject and excused herself pleased him that she was a quick thinker. Yet he was still a little bothered that he hadn’t had a chance to speak with the family and offer them any help or an uplifting message. Besides, everyone had always said what a pleasure it had been to be able to serve the Lord by watching out for his servant. He never demanded anything in payment, but a nice visit had always been welcome.

  “Where else should we stop?” Amelia asked as they walked down the street. “Should we stop at every house on this street? I don’t want Elizabeth to think we only picked her place.”

  “Are you really going to go gather flowers from her, or was that just an excuse?” Benjamin grabbed onto that thought as he spotted some
other flowers in a nearby yard.

  Amelia smiled. “I am. I love the color of those flowers. That was the truth. It also made it easier to share our bounty with her if she thought she was going to be able to give something in return. I hated feeling like I owed someone something for their kindness after my parents passed. When they gave me an opportunity to give back when I could, it made it easier to accept help.”

  “Are you saying everyone should repay you for your visits?” Benjamin asked. Perhaps he should have questioned her more about her beliefs and behaviors before he blindly agreed to marry her just because of his grandparents’ recommendation.

  “No, of course not,” Amelia said. “Why would you think that?”

  “I just don’t understand why you would need the help of a little girl to weed your garden.” He looked her over and frowned. “I will still help you. I wasn’t planning on leaving all the work to you. I did manage to care for the garden before you arrived.” Had he been completely misled by her kind words earlier?

  Amelia slowed down and looked at him. “No. I don’t expect her to weed my garden. I expect her to come share our tomatoes. Your tomatoes.”

  “Then why not just tell them she could come pick tomatoes?”

  Amelia turned to face him, her hands clasped together in front of her. “Because I wanted her to feel as if she was important to me. That someone like me could use the help of someone like her. That she had value and was not just a person to give charity to for charity’s sake.”

  “Everyone here in Birch Creek is always good about helping those in need. No one expects to be repaid for their kindness. Charity is the love of Christ.”

  “It is, and that is one of the most incredible gifts there is,” Amelia said. “Of course, so is dignity and respect, and purpose.” She turned and began to walk again. “Little Lucy will come to us any time she is in need, because she knows she can help as well. She’ll learn to treat others with kindness because kindness was shown to her. She’ll continue to work hard and have a strong will to survive through the tough times.”

  Benjamin considered her words. He had always shared his bounty with the people here in Birch Creek, and they had always been kind and thankful for his help and his ministry. They had treated him well and cared for him as he cared for them. Just because something worked back home for her, why should she automatically assume she’d get the same results here?

  He doubted little Lucy would come to work in their garden. They had enough work to do at home in their own garden. With a younger sibling not able to do much to help on his own yet, and with their mother working for Dr. Mills at her clinic, Lucy would be needed at home. It wasn’t worth arguing with Amelia about it and they continued to walk down the street.

  There were no other widows that he needed to check on, but the Clark children were still sick. Of course, he couldn’t stop there since Amelia had not had the chicken pox before. That would have to be a visit for another time.

  “Perhaps for the rest of the evening, we should just walk around and if anyone is out and about we can stop and say hello. Otherwise, I’ll just tell you the family names and a little about those who live at each place.”

  Amelia nodded, but didn’t speak.

  ***

  Amelia wasn’t sure exactly what she had done that was so wrong in Benjamin’s view. She would stand by what she’d said, though. She had recognized the look in Elizabeth’s eyes. She had felt the same way when her own beloved reverend and the kind people in her area had come to offer their condolences after her parents’ passing. Only the Morrisons had helped her feel like she could still offer something to someone and not be a burden.

  She wanted to make sure that Elizabeth and her family felt as if they weren’t just someone to stop and give charity to. Little Lucy’s excitement over the tomatoes had sparked the idea and Amelia had just run with it. She was pleased it had worked so well for Lucy and Elizabeth. Hopefully Benjamin wouldn’t be too bothered by it when Lucy came by in the next day or two.

  If so, then she’d have to learn how best to help him without getting in his way. Maybe going out together to visit the people here in town wasn’t such a great idea. If her being with him at the neighbors made things different for his visits, it might be better if she visited on her own at another time. He obviously had a good relationship with the people here. It was clear with the way people would wave them over to talk as they passed.

  Each family they visited was just as kind as the last and by the time they made it home, there were even a few more things in their hands than they had left with.

  People here gave each other things all the time it seemed. She held a small jar with a sourdough start in it and had another jar with a home remedy for sore hands since one of the women had noticed her chapped knuckles from her day spent doing laundry. None of them had any plans to require something in return from her as Benjamin had indicated.

  Amelia looked over at Benjamin and smiled. “Thank you for asking for those seed heads from the poppies.”

  “You’re welcome,” Benjamin said. “I hope you like them.”

  “Oh, I do. I’m not certain where the best place to plant them would be, but I think the corner near the large pine would be good. I think some bright red over there would look lovely.”

  Amelia put the things away and looked at the loaf of bread and some cheese. She didn’t feel up to making a large meal, and still needed to gather the eggs, feed the animals, and bring in the clothes from the line.

  “Are you hungry now?” Amelia asked.

  “Sure,” Benjamin said. “I do need to quickly go write down something that came to mind as we were out. I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

  He was gone before Amelia could even ask what he wanted to eat. She took the bread and cheese, then found the remaining eggs she’d gathered that morning and whipped up a simple meal. She knocked on the door to his study and waited for a moment, then said, “The food is ready.”

  As she walked back toward the kitchen, the sound of the wind picking up made her look outside. A hint of a storm was blowing in. Amelia hurried outside to pull the laundry from the lines. She dropped the clothes into the wash bucket that had been turned over to dry then grabbed the small wooden clothes pins and tossed them on top. She got into the house just as the first of the raindrops hit and the door slammed behind her.

  The kitchen was still empty and the food remained as it was where she’d left it on the table. She didn’t want to bother him by telling him to come in again so she quickly folded the clothes, hoping he’d arrive in just a few minutes. When she’d folded the last of the trousers and placed the clothes on the side counter, she put the wash bucket down on the floor from where she’d had it siting on the chair, then sat down to eat.

  If he hadn’t arrived by the time she finished her meal, she’d take the food into him so he could eat it on his own while he continued to work on his writing or studying.

  She had only known him for a few short days, but it was obvious he got focused on something and seemed to lose track of what else was going on. It reminded her a lot of what her father had been like before he’d started to forget things. That was one of the first signs something had gone wrong. He would stop working on one of his projects part way through and often left them unfinished until either her mother, or someone else mentioned it.

  As long as Benjamin was happy to keep himself focused on his work, she wouldn’t interfere.

  ***

  Benjamin just couldn’t get it quite right. He wasn’t sure what was off about his sermon this week. He had always had things prepared and ready by Wednesday at the latest so he could go over it multiple times before presenting it on Sunday. Now it was Thursday night and he felt as if he had barely begun to gather his thoughts. Nothing he tried to come up with seemed to work and he had started over more than a half dozen times. That had never happened to him before. Of course, his sudden marriage had thrown things out of schedule a bit.

  He still ha
d a day or two, yet his words didn’t flow like he’d hoped they would. It was hard to stay focused on the scriptures and uplifting messages when his mind kept wandering to his new companion.

  As a man of God, Benjamin knew he should have better willpower to keep his mind on the messages from the Bible. He shouldn’t have been thinking about how God gave Adam a companion and help-meet in Eve.

  Amelia was turning out to be a great help and he was thankful for her presence at his home. He knew God had established marriage for a great purpose, but if he didn’t keep himself focused, he might allow himself to wander off and spend more time at her side. He just couldn’t justify spending more time talking with her than he did on preparing the best sermon for his congregation.

  She was kind enough to the widow Elizabeth and her family, but it still bothered him that Amelia actually expected help in return for her kindness shown. Perhaps he should add a little message about service without repayment in his sermon. That would be easy enough to do. And if it didn’t seem as if she understood his meaning, he could have a more personal discussion with her. After all, that was the role of a husband, to teach his wife the best way to live and serve others.

  Besides, he needed to make sure everyone in town understood how things were between himself and Amelia. If he didn’t speak with the same dignity and authority he always did, the whole town would think he’d lost his focus and allowed his new wife to distract him. That was far from the truth, yet at the same time, a little too close to what he was feeling now.

  Another knock on the door made him sigh. Why couldn’t he focus? “Come in.”

  Amelia opened the door and walked in with a plate and fork. “I hope it’s not too cold. I thought perhaps you would like to eat in here so you can continue your work. Just leave the plate and I’ll take care of it tomorrow. Have a good night.”

  She turned to go as he stared at the plate, then he looked at the clock and realized she’d come in nearly half an hour ago. When she reached the door, Benjamin finally got his mind back on track enough to say, “Thank you for the meal. Have a good night.”