© 2016 by Wanda E. Brunstetter and Jean Brunstetter
Print ISBN 978-1-63409-224-1
eBook Editions:
Adobe Digital Edition (.epub) 978-1-63409-988-2
Kindle and MobiPocket Edition (.prc) 978-1-63409-989-9
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted for commercial purposes, except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without written permission of the publisher.
All scripture quotations are taken from the King James Version of the Bible.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any similarity to actual people, organizations, and/or events is purely coincidental.
Cover design: Buffy Cooper
Cover photography: Richard Brunstetter III; RBIII Studios
Published by Shiloh Run Press, an imprint of Barbour Publishing, Inc., P.O. Box 719, Uhrichsville, Ohio 44683, www.barbourbooks.com
Our mission is to publish and distribute inspirational products offering exceptional value and biblical encouragement to the masses.
Printed in Canada.
To LeAnna Lehman, a special Amish friend who has visited the Hawaiian Islands.
And to our friends, Bob and Sue Miller, who have a heart for the Amish people.
Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.
Hebrews 13:2
Contents
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Epilogue
Prologue
Middlebury, Indiana
Mandy Frey gazed at the travel brochures lying on the kitchen table. The pictures were so vibrant and enticing she could almost smell the soothing scents of the tropical flowers and hear the gentle lapping of ocean waves. Ever since her Mennonite cousin Ruth went to the Hawaiian islands for missionary training two years ago, Mandy had yearned to visit. For a little over a year, she had saved toward the trip. She’d invited three of her closest friends—Barbara Hilty, Ellen Lambright, and Sadie Kuhns—to go on the cruise with her. They’d kept their plans secret until they had enough money and had made arrangements for time off from their jobs. They would leave in one month, traveling by train to Los Angeles. From there, they’d be on a cruise ship for four-and-a-half days until they reached their first Hawaiian island.
Paging through another brochure, dazzling pictures of cascading waterfalls and scenic mountains heavy with vegetation gave her goosebumps. Everything seemed so colorful in Hawaii—even the exotic birds. She wished she was there right now.
Excitement bubbled in Mandy’s soul as she envisioned herself sitting on the beach with her toes in the warm grains of sand, inhaling the salty air. “This is a trip of a lifetime,” she murmured. It was one she would probably never make again, so Mandy wasn’t about to let anything or anyone dampen her spirits.
But the hope of nothing spoiling her enthusiasm didn’t last long. When she’d told her parents this morning about her plans, Mom wasn’t happy and tried to talk her out of going, saying Hawaii was too far away. She’d also mentioned if Mandy had a problem while she was there, her family wouldn’t be readily available to help.
Dad hadn’t said much, other than telling Mom their only daughter was a grown woman and had the right to make her own decisions. Mandy could have hugged him right then and there, but held back, not wanting Mom to feel hurt or left out. Mandy’s younger brother, Milo, had sided with Mom, but Mandy ignored his concerns. She and her friends had booked their trip to Hawaii through a local travel agency, and she would not change her plans. The only person left to tell was her boyfriend, Gideon. She hoped he would take the news well.
Chapter 1
Los Angeles, California November 1
As Mandy sat with her friends, waiting to board the cruise ship that would take them to Hawaii, her thoughts went to Gideon. It had been difficult saying goodbye to him before their driver took them to the train station in Elkhart. She felt bad about his negative reaction when she’d told him she planned to make this trip with her friends. She should have said something sooner, so he would have been more prepared for her departure.
Diverting her thoughts, Mandy watched the young boy sitting across from her, bouncing in his chair while drinking a can of orange soda. He spilled it down the front of his shirt and started howling and kicking his feet.
Patiently, the child’s mother got up and took him by the hand to the restroom.
Mandy leaned close to Barbara and whispered, “That little guy is sure a handful.”
“Jah. I don’t envy his mother. He’ll probably keep her plenty busy on this trip.”
Mandy listened to the steady hum of voices around her. The terminal was filled with an air of excitement, but her thoughts returned to Gideon, remembering his hurt expression as he held her hand. “I don’t want you to go, Mandy, but if this is what you want, then you have my blessing and ought to follow your heart. I’ll be here when you get back, and then we can talk about our future.”
Mandy didn’t know if her future was with Gideon. They’d been courting over a year, and she’d suspected for some time he wanted to propose marriage. He’d no doubt held back because she hadn’t committed to joining the church. Since every couple planning to get married in an Amish community must first join the church, there was no point in him proposing until they both had been baptized and become church members.
I may feel ready when we return from this trip, she mused. If I do, then I’ll take classes to prepare for church membership.
Ellen snapped her fingers, causing Mandy to jump. “Our number’s been called. It’s time to board the ship.”
On the Cruise Ship
“Ach, this room is much smaller than I thought it would be, even if it is nicely decorated. It’s not much bigger than the two tiny rooms we had on the train that brought us to California.” Barbara’s eyebrows rose as she made a sweeping gesture of the room they’d been assigned. “And how are the four of us supposed to sleep when there are only two beds?”
Mandy shrugged. “Maybe someone made a mistake and gave us the wrong room.” She couldn’t imagine how these arrangements would work. Their travel agent had told them the room they’d booked would sleep four, and it included two bunk beds. They’d either been misinformed or someone made an error. Perhaps two other people on the ship had been shown a room with four beds. They needed to get to the bottom of this before they unpacked their suitcases.
“Look, there’s one of the Pullman beds! The other one is up there, too.” Sadie pointed to the ceiling above one of the small beds on the floor, and then to the other. “Remember, our
agent said it would be similar to a top bunk bed, except instead of being held up by posts extending from a bottom bunk, it’s supported by brackets attached to a wall. It can be folded up into the ceiling when not in use to create more space in the room.”
“It’s certainly folded up right now.” Ellen raised her head, squinting her blue eyes. “How are we supposed to get the beds down from the ceiling?”
“We won’t have to worry about putting them up or down, because one of the ship’s attendants will pull the beds down for us at night and raise them again each morning when our room is serviced.” Sadie’s tone was typical—so matter of fact.
Mandy couldn’t help grinning. Leave it to Sadie to know all the details. Even at home, whenever the four young women planned to do something together, Sadie made sure of the details. She was usually responsible for making all the arrangements, too. Last month when the girls got together to do some sewing at Sadie’s house, she’d made certain everything was laid out before they arrived. She had even provided them with needles, thread, and scissors. All Mandy, Ellen, and Barbara had to bring was the material they planned to cut and sew. Sadie prepared a casserole for their lunch that day. The smell of it warming in the oven had greeted them as soon as they’d entered the house.
Barbara cleared her throat, bringing Mandy’s thoughts to a halt. “I hope I don’t have to sleep in one of those upper bunks. I’d feel claustrophobic being so close to the ceiling.”
“Me, too,” Ellen agreed. “And I’d be worried about falling out.”
Mandy folded her arms. She didn’t want to sleep on a top bunk, either, but this problem would be resolved sooner if she volunteered. “I’ll give it a try. How about you, Sadie?”
Heaving a sigh, Sadie gave a nod. “Since we’ve settled the sleeping arrangements now, why don’t we unpack?”
“It can wait awhile. Right now, I want to take a tour of the ship.” Smiling, Barbara pointed to the door.
“I’m all for that!” Ellen pushed a strand of golden-blond hair back under her white head covering and moved toward the door, no doubt as eager as Barbara to check things out.
“Let’s go for a walk and look at what’s available for us on a few of the outside decks. I’d like to see if there are any good books in the library, too,” Sadie suggested. “Afterward, we can head up to the room where lunch will be served buffet style.”
Feeling a gurgle in her midsection, Mandy placed both hands on her stomach. “Thinking about all the food that’ll be available to us on this cruise makes me hungerich.”
“I hope we don’t run into bad weather or rough waters during our trip.” Barbara placed both hands on her stomach. “It wouldn’t be fun if any of us got seasick.”
Mandy wrinkled her nose. “I don’t even want to think about getting grank.”
“How about this.” Sadie lifted her hands above her head, yawning nosily. “The first person who gets sick has to buy the rest of us lunch when we get to Maui.”
All heads turned to look at her with furrowed brows.
“Okay, guess it’s a bad idea. Let’s just relax and have fun.”
It took awhile to find their way up to the room where they would be served dinner each evening, but with the help of one of the ship’s attendants, they finally made it. Mandy was glad when she and her friends were seated at their table a few minutes before 6:00 p.m., which was when the meal was supposed to be served. They would sit at this same table for all their evening meals during the cruise. They’d also have the same waiters.
“I don’t know about anyone else, but I’m not used to having a four-course meal for supper.” Ellen placed a linen napkin across her lap.
“Me neither.” Mandy glanced at the fancy dishes, noticing the blue vine pattern on the rim, and several pieces of silverware beside each plate. She hoped she wouldn’t mess up and eat with the wrong utensil or accidentally drink from her neighbor’s glass. That would be so embarrassing.
“I’m still full from all the food we had for lunch.” Barbara groaned. “Not sure I’ll be able to eat all my dinner.”
Sadie tapped Barbara’s arm in a motherly fashion. “Eat what you can.”
“I don’t like to waste food. Sis en sin un e schand.”
Ellen rolled her eyes. “Wasting food is a shame, but I don’t think it’s a sin.”
“Probably not.” Barbara raised her slim shoulders in a brief shrug. “I can only imagine what my mamm might say if she were here right now and I didn’t eat everything on my plate.”
“Well, none of our mothers are here, so we should relax and enjoy ourselves.” Sadie reached for the salt and pepper and sprinkled some on her salad.
After they prayed silently and began to eat, introductions were made among those sitting closest to them. Since the same people would be seated at their table every evening, Mandy thought it was a good idea to get acquainted.
“Are the four of you nuns?” the young Asian woman sitting on one side of Mandy asked.
“No, we are not.” Sadie spoke up. “We’re Amish.”
Blinking rapidly, the woman tilted her head to one side. “Amish? But I thought by the way you prayed and the plain clothes you wear…”
Mandy stifled a giggle as Sadie shared a brief history of the Amish and their way of dress. “Nuns dress different than we do,” she added.
As the meal progressed, Mandy and her friends discussed what an adventure it was being on the ship and how eager they were to get to Hawaii. From what Mandy’s cousin told her about the Big Island, which would be the last island they visited, each day would be filled with many things to see and do. Of course, with only one day spent on each of the islands, they’d have to pick and choose what sights to see. They could either sign up to go with one of the tour groups or strike out on their own. It was logical to go with a group. But since they had to be back at the ship by a certain time each day, they’d have to make every minute count and see as much as possible.
If we ventured out on our own and didn’t make it back in time, we could become stranded, Mandy thought, while cracking the crab shell on her plate. We’ll need to make sure it never happens.
The first three courses of their meal were delicious, but filling. When it came time for the last course—a scrumptious-looking strawberry cheesecake—Mandy was too full to eat it. Their waiter came by the table and offered to box it up so she could take it back to her room. Mandy declined, saying she wouldn’t be able to eat anything more tonight. Between breakfast in the morning, a buffet lunch around noon, plus tomorrow’s evening meal, she didn’t think she’d have room to eat much else. Maybe I won’t have a big lunch every day, she thought. Tomorrow, I may try some pizza or a hot dog at one of the snack areas I saw earlier today.
“For a while I thought we weren’t going to find our room,” Ellen said as the four of them prepared for bed. “This ship is so big, and with several dining rooms on board, it’s easy to get lost.”
“I know.” Mandy sighed contently as she brushed her long hair. “But it’s worth getting lost to be able to say we were on this enormous boat.”
“The dining room looked so nice. It’s amazing how many details were put into the design of the ship’s interior.” Barbara sat on one of the twin beds, removed her hairpins, and placed her head covering on the nightstand next to her bed.
“Shall we play a game or sit and talk awhile?” Ellen asked.
Sadie yawned. “I don’t know about the rest of you, but I’m mied and more than ready for bed.” She glanced at one of the bunks overhead, which had been dropped down from the ceiling while they were out of their room. Two ladders had also been set in place, making it possible to climb up to the beds.
Mandy wasn’t eager to sleep in either bunk. She’d had a terrible experience sleeping on one when she was younger and had ended up on the floor with a bruised tailbone. But at least the attached side rails on these bunks should keep her from falling out. “Which bed do you want, Sadie?” she asked.
“It doesn
’t matter to me. Why don’t you choose?”
Mandy picked the bunk above Ellen’s bed, and after telling her friends good night, she climbed the ladder and settled in. She didn’t get up in the middle of the night most of the time anyway, so other than feeling cramped, she would manage. The mattress wasn’t too bad—a littler firmer than she’d like, but it would have to do. As tired as she was, she didn’t even care.
Curling up against her pillow, she closed her eyes and prayed for her family back home. She also prayed for Gideon and asked God to give her a sense of direction about whether she should join the Amish church or not. Before drifting off to sleep, Mandy prayed, Heavenly Father, please keep us safe on this journey, and may we return home with many wonderful memories to cherish for the rest of our lives.
Chapter 2
When Mandy awoke the following morning, she felt strange—almost as though someone had rolled her around while she was sleeping. She could sense the ship swaying and knew the sea must be rough. What a contrast from the calm of last night. She pushed her sheets aside and climbed carefully down from her bunk. Once her feet hit the floor, she rubbed her eyes, trying to clear her vision.
“Sis mer iwwel.” Ellen groaned from her lower bunk.
“If you’re sick to your stomach, it’s probably from the rocking of the ship.” Mandy looked at Sadie and Barbara who were already up, but not dressed. “Do either of you feel seasick?”
“So far, I’m okay, but we should probably put some of those motion-sickness drops behind our ears, in case the rest of us do start to feel grank. It’s a good thing I brought this along.” Sadie took the bottle out of her traveling case and dabbed some behind both ears, then passed it to Ellen, who did the same. When Ellen was done, she gave the bottle to Mandy. After she’d put drops behind her ears, she handed it to Barbara.
“If I’d have known last night this would happen to me, I would have put some of the drops on before going to bed.” Ellen sat up, clutching her stomach. “I won’t be able to eat anything, feeling like this, but you three should get dressed and enjoy the breakfast buffet.” Moaning, she continued holding her stomach.
The Hawaiian Quilt Page 1
