The Chosen Amish

by Deidra Scott

  The Chosen Amish

  Deidra Scott

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

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  Chapter One

  David Miller took a deep breath of the clean spring morning air and sighed. Spring...it had always been the promise of fresh starts and new beginnings.

  Not that there was very much hope of a new beginning for him.

  Reaching up to adjust his straw hat on his head, David kicked at a clump of dirt in the midst of his freshly plowed corn field. He started toward the house where his wife, Ida, would surely be up making breakfast. Soon it would be time to get the horses hitched up and start on their way to church.

  “Daed, Daed!” The voice of his six-year-old son, Lucas made David look up and give a slight smile in the child’s direction. The little boy was running through the clumps of dirt, struggling to keep his footing. There were few things in life that made David quite as happy as the sight of his little boy. The spitting image of David with his curly dark hair and brown eyes, Lucas certainly made his father proud.

  Reaching down, David scooped the little boy up in his arms right before he could trip over a clump of dirt.

  “Watch it there, son,” David warned him as he slung the child under his arm like a sack of potatoes, “No need to get your church clothes all filthy.”

  Lucas giggled as he bounced in his father’s arms.

  “Mamm said to tell you it’s almost time to leave!” Lucas informed David when he finally reached the yard and had put him back on his feet in the soft grass, “She said you’d better get yourself ready or we’d be late again.”

  David sucked in a deep breath and slowly shook his head. Ach, if that woman didn’t nag him about everything. And lately it seemed that she was trying to use his child to nag him as well!

  “You tell your Mamm...” David’s voice trailed off as he thought better of his words. Letting out a huff, he gave Lucas a push toward the house, “Tell her I’ll be in soon. I just want to go on and hitch up the buggy.”

  Walking toward the barn, David wished that he could just hole himself away in it for good. It was starting to look like life with his wife just wasn’t worth living.

  By the time David had the horses ready and went into the house, it was easy to tell that Ida was in a tizzy.

  “David!” Ida exclaimed as she glanced at the pocket watch lying on the table, “Do you realize how late it is? Ach! We should have been on the road fifteen minutes ago!”

  “We will get there,” David assured her as he reached out for his black felt hat.

  When he reached for it, Ida let out a deep groan and hurried to his side, “David, look at your shirt! You’ve got dirt all over the sleeve. Why did you wear it to go out into the fields, anyway?”

  David felt like he was a bottle of soda pop that had been shaken for too long and was finally being released to explode. Unable to hold in his fury any longer, he turned on his heels and looked at his wife in surprise, “Can’t I do anything good enough for you?!” .

  Obviously taken back by his outburst, Ida took a deep breath and stepped away to make room between them.

  “Let’s just get going,” She managed to whisper as she reached for her black bonnet.

  Sitting on the hard wooden church pew, David tried to keep his mind on the service, but it seemed that his thoughts were constantly traveling to any other topic.

  Realizing the sermon was coming to a close, David sat up straighter, anxious to get out of the packed Amish house and back to his own home.

  “Before we enjoy the delicious meal that the Millers have prepared, I have an exciting announcement,” Preached Ben said. Motioning toward someone in the crowd, David turned and let his eyes follow a young Amish couple as they slowly rose to their feet.

  “Joe Eicher and Miriam Kiem want to announce their engagement,” Preacher Ben continued.

  David watched the young couple glance at each other, their eyes filling with excitement and love.

  It had been a long time since Ida and David had looked at each other like that.

  There had been a time when David had truly thought that he loved Ida. He could still remember their first encounter. He had been attending a wedding for his cousin in Indiana and had managed to come across the spunky sixteen-year-old girl. She was so cheerful, her round cheeks so rosy, and she had such a happy skip to her step. Just being around Ida had made David happy...so happy that he could hardly stand to come back home to Kentucky. Ach, how he’d worried that she would find another beau before he had a chance to get to know her!

  But now...well, everything had changed now. Maybe it had simply been too many years together...maybe time was dragging them apart as they each became more consumed with their own chores and daily tasks. Whatever the case, David had to admit that he no longer felt anything close to love when he saw his wife; in fact, more days then not, he found himself battling feelings that bordered closer to outright dislike.

  “David? David!” Ida’s voice brought David out of his thoughts, alerting him that church services were over and he was the only one still sitting on a bench.

  Pulling himself to his feet, David tried to ignore the irritation that he sensed in his wife’s voice.

  “Where’s Lucas?” David asked as he reached for his black felt hat.

  “He’s out in the barn playing with some of his friends before we eat.” Ida sounded so cheerful that her syrupy words made David want to vomit. Why was she putting on a show, acting like she liked him? David knew the truth and he was sick of watching his wife put on a good front in public.

  David grimaced and shook his head, “I don’t feel gut. I think we need to just go on home.”

  Ida opened her mouth to protest but then seemed to stop herself. Lifting her hand, she placed it on his forehead. “You don’t feel hot,” she announced, “Maybe you just need to eat.”

  Reaching up, David grabbed her hand in his grip and jerked it away from his face.

  “I think I know when I feel sick,” he snarled, tightening his grasp. Ida looked up to meet his stare, her blue eyes suddenly huge and filling with tears.

  Releasing his grasp with a force that almost made her lose her balance, David looked away and stated, “Get Lucas. I’ll be in the buggy.”

  Chapter Two

  As David went out to the barn to unhitch his horse from the buggy, he found himself struggling with an assortment of feelings. Ida hadn’t spoken a word the entire ride home. Lucas, who had wanted to stay and eat with the rest of the Amish community, had spent the trip crying.

  Running a hand through his hair, David shook his head in frustration. It seemed like everything was becoming too stressful to ever hope to handle.

  Taking a deep breath, David released the horse into a stall and closed the gate behind it. Turning around, David made his way to a feed trough and lifted the wooden lid. Reaching deep down into the recess of the empty storage bin, he gave a sigh of relief when he pulled up the bottle of whiskey that had been hidden from sight.

  For some reason, he was always afraid that Ida would have found it and taken it away.

  Uncorking the bottle, David lifted it to his lips and took a swig before he set the bottle aside and started hanging the bridle, bits, and other pieces of buggy equipment on their places in the barn.

  David had always drunk a little bit. When he was younger, it hadn’t seemed like such a big deal. Although he knew his parents did not like it, living in a very relaxed Amish community, the young folks were allowed to bring alcohol to their gatherings if they want
ed. David had never thought a thing of trying a little bit every now and again. Something about it simply seemed to make the gatherings more enjoyable...and, as time passed, David started to realize that alcohol made everything in life a little more enjoyable.

  It still did.

  “David?” The voice of his wife made David jump and nearly spill the whiskey across the front of his white shirt. Letting out a low curse, David acted quickly and hid the bottle on a nearby shelf that was full of tools.

  “David?” Ida called out again.

  “I’m back here,” David managed to call out, hoping that his secret was safely out of sight.

  Taking a deep breath, David looked up to see his wife making her way toward him. David could feel his heart beating wildly in his chest and his hands shaking at his side. His legs felt so wobbly, he wondered if he could continue to stand without sinking to the ground in a pile.

  “Ach, I was starting to wonder if you’d just vanished!” Ida announced with a forced laugh as she stopped in front of him.

  “Nope.” David tried to sound nonchalant as he hung up a bridle and turned to look at her. He bit his tongue to keep from adding, I’m sure you wish I would!

  Coming to his side, Ida reached out awkwardly and put her hand on his arm. “David,” she whispered, “I’m worried about you.”

  David couldn’t keep from rolling his eyes. Jutting out his bottom jaw, he tried to decide how to handle her without exploding.

  Turning to face her head-on, David shrugged and smirked, “Worried about what? Everything’s fine. I’ll be back to my old self as soon as I manage to get that bill paid off at the feed store.”

  Ida cocked her head to one side, her eyes filling with sympathy as she obviously tried to be understanding. Reaching up, she put her hands on David’s shoulders and said, “It will be okay.”

  Putting her arms around him, Ida leaned her head against his chest and whispered, “It just seems that you’ve been troubled...ever since your mamm died.”

  David felt himself bristle. He definitely did not want to talk about or even think of his mother. But saying that would surely bring only more tension between them. Instead, David kept silent and let his wife hug him.

  “Come on inside,” Ida suggested, “Lucas is down for his nap, but he might wake up.”

  “I’ll be in soon,” David promised, trying to sound pleasant as he swallowed hard against the bitterness in his throat, “I just have to finish putting away these things.”

  Ida nodded and released him from her hug. Standing on tip-toe, she gave him a kiss on the cheek, “I’ll go get you a sandwich ready.”

  David turned back to his work, anxious to have his wife back in the house.

  “What is that?”

  Ida’s question made David’s blood instantly go cold. During the split second he had looked away, she had managed to spot his bottle of whisky. David made a mad dash for the shelf, anxious to do anything to hide it, but he was too late; his wife already knew the truth.

  “Ach, David!” She exclaimed, her face suddenly growing solemn, “I thought you’d quit.”

  “Drinking isn’t illegal.” David retorted, his internal temperature suddenly starting to rise, “I’m not a little boy, you know. You’re not my parent.”

  “David...” Ida took a deep breath, trying to collect her thoughts, “I’m not trying to act like that. I just asked a simple question!”

  “A simple question that is none of your business!”

  “None of my business?” Ida returned, her eyes suddenly filling with a fire of her own, “Anything you do is my business – I’m your wife.”

  “Then maybe I wish you weren’t!”

  As soon as the words escaped David’s lips, he regretted them. Turning, he grabbed a pitchfork and started mercilessly tossing hay in every direction.

  “Don’t you turn your back on me!” Ida exclaimed, dogging his every step, “What is that supposed to mean, David? Are you so unhappy with me as a wife that you’ve had to drown yourself in this?” Grabbing for the bottle of whisky, she held it up in his face, “Do you have to hide whisky out here in this barn so you’ll have something to turn to when you’re sick of dealing with me?”

  David couldn’t take it any longer. Grabbing the bottle out of her hands, he flipped it upside down, pouring all the contents on the barn floor. Tossing the empty glass bottle aside, he reached out and grabbed his wife by the arm, shaking her as he asked, “There! There you go! Are you happy now? You just made me pour it out and waste it all. There you go!”

  “David,” Ida’s eyes were starting to fill with tears, “Let go of me, David! You’re hurting me!”

  Every time she tried to flinch, David tightened his grip. Gritting his teeth together, David yelled, “Are you happy with me now?” Letting his emotions get the best of him, David lifted his hand above her face.

  “David!” A voice yelled out. But this time it wasn’t Ida.

  Looking up in surprise, David was met with the bishop and church elders standing only a few feet away watching the entire scene unfold before them.

  Chapter Three

  As soon as David saw the church leaders, he released his grip on his wife. He looked down at the tops of his black boots, unable to meet their stares over the weight of his shame.

  “Ida,” the bishop took a deep breath, obviously struggling to compose himself, “Are you all right?”

  Reaching up to wipe at tears, David could hear the tremble in her voice when she whispered, “Jah, I’m fine. I need to get in the house to check on Lucas.”

  Pushing past the crowd of Amish men, Ida hurried away.

  Of course, she’d leave. She wouldn’t leave when David wanted her to but, as soon as she was faced with something unpleasant, she was quick to turn and make her escape. Even in his humiliation, David had to let out a snort when he thought about the irony of it all.

  “David,” Bishop Pete let out a deep sigh, “We need to talk. Let’s make our way to the house and visit with Ida for a few minutes.”

  Going to the house was the last thing that David wanted to do, but he knew he would have to submit to the church leaders if he didn’t want to face the bann. When they reached the house, Ida assured them that Lucas was still sound asleep in his bed.

  Bishop Pete motioned toward the empty kitchen table, “Why don’t you have a seat?”

  Ida stood in the shadows, wiping her eyes and trying to gather her composure.

  “Would anyone like some tea and pie?” Ida managed to ask, her voice still shaky.

  Bishop Pete shook his head, “No, Ida. We’re all fine. We don’t just want to talk to David – we want to talk to you, as well.”

  David felt himself flinch as his wife pulled a chair out beside him. If she hadn’t pestered him so much, the church elders wouldn’t have seen such a hideous outburst! David didn’t want her near him.

  Bishop Pete was silent for a few moments before asking, “Ida, are you all right? Do you need anything?”

  “Do you need a doctor?” One of the more outspoken elders pressured.

  Ida shook her head quickly, “Ach, no! Goodness, I’m not hurt...just shook up is all.”

  Bishop Pete was the next one to ask, “Does this happen regularly, Ida?”

  Ida was silent before asking, “Does what happen?”

  “Does your husband beat you?” Someone else asked boldly.

  David felt like crawling under the table and hiding. It would be just like Ida to lie and say that he did. She was always out to make him seem like a bad husband.

  “No,” Ida announced firmly, “Not at all. David has had a lot of stress...and he’s seemed different since his mom died. We’ve always argued over the drinking, but never like this. Today was the worst things have ever been.”

  “How much does he drink?”

  Ida shrugged, “I do not know.”

  “David,” Bishop Pete leaned forward and studied David across the table, “how much are you drinking?”

 
David leaned back in his seat and let out a deep breath, “Maybe once a week,” he shrugged, “Drinking is not against our Ordnung, Pete.”

  “I know the Ordnung better than anyone,” Pete returned, “David, we came out here because some of the elders mentioned you were harsh with Ida this morning. I wanted to talk about it and see if we could help.”

  David grimaced inwardly when he remembered grabbing Ida’s hand after the church service that morning.

  “After what I just witnessed in the barn, I think it’s safe to say that we truly have a bad situation developing here.”

  David fought the urge to jut out his bottom jaw in defiance as he tried to find the courage to stare the community leader in the eyes.

  “It’s got to stop, David,” Pete announced firmly, pounding his fist against the table, “Before this turns into something nasty, it has to end. From here on out, you are not to react to your wife in anger. I don’t know what is going on with you, but you need to work it out between yourself, God, and Ida. You are not to put a hand on Ida or Lucas unless it is done in love.” Letting out a deep breath, Bishop Pete added, “And, regardless of how little you are drinking, it’s obvious it’s causing problems with your family. From now on, you are to buy no more alcohol and you are to drink no more alcohol.”

  David slowly nodded his head. What else was he supposed to do?

  The bishop went on to explain that if David refused to go along with their agreement, he would face serious consequences for his behavior.

  When the church leaders left, David refused to eat and went back out to the barn where he could be alone.

  David had to brace himself for courage to crawl into bed that night. After an afternoon spent avoiding his wife, hiding from Ida seemed impossible when they shared the same room. His only hope was to go to sleep quickly and get the day over with.

  Ida was sitting up against the hand-carved wooden headboard, her Bible propped open in her lap. Just the sight of her reading sent a wave of nausea through David. Of course, she would have to sit there, looking so arrogant as she read the Lord’s book.