Katie Opens Her Heart

by Jerry S. Eicher

  “I’m glad to see you’re finally home,” Mamm said as she came over to help unhitch.

  Katie’s heart pounded, but she didn’t look at Mamm’s face. Her news about the invitation should be told soon, but her mouth was so dry nothing would come out at the moment.

  “One of our cows has a huge bulge on its side,” Mamm said, taking the tugs off on her side. “I went to the phone shack to call the vet. He should be here any minute. I certainly didn’t want to be here by myself when he arrived.”

  “Oh!” Katie’s mind whirled.

  “Yah,” Mamm said. “I know how you feel. We can’t afford to lose a cow, nor can we afford the vet bill either. But losing the cow would be worse.”

  “Do you know what’s causing the bulge?” Katie asked as she tried to collect her thoughts.

  “Nee, but the swelling has gotten worse since I called the vet.”

  “Which cow is it?”

  “Molly.” Mamm glanced toward the barn. “Bossy looks okay to me, but you never know. I sure hope this isn’t something catching.”

  Katie focused her attention on the task at hand—finishing her side of the unhitching. She led Sparky forward while Mamm held the buggy shafts. Leading the horse into the barn, Katie slid the harness off and hung it on the wall. Mamm released Sparky into his stall and added oats in the feed trough. As mother and daughter entered the barnyard, Mamm pointed toward the ailing milk cow.

  Molly looked mournfully up at them as they approached, her upper left side extended with a large hump. It looked like a balloon had been stuck under her skin.

  Mamm ran her hand over the bulging skin, and Molly groaned in protest.

  “It looks awful,” Katie said.

  From behind them they heard the sound of an Englisha vehicle driving down the lane.

  “It’s the vet!” Mamm said, relief on her face.

  Katie stayed with Molly while Mamm went to greet the man. Bossy was standing by the barn door now, banging her head against the side boards and making her will to be milked known. This was a gut sign. Bossy must not have whatever Molly had caught.

  Katie turned back to the moaning cow and stroked the long, familiar face. There was nothing she could do but supply a little comfort. “Don’t go dying on us now,” Katie crooned. “We need you badly.”

  Molly continued moaning, lifting one of her front feet to stomp the ground. Behind Katie the barn door swung open again, and Mamm led the vet to the sick cow.

  The vet nodded to Katie, giving her a quick glance before examining Molly.

  Before long Mamm asked, “Can you see what’s wrong with her? Will we be losing her?”

  “That depends,” the vet replied. “I don’t think this is too far advanced, thankfully. Have you been feeding these cows alfalfa? Or wheat perhaps?”

  “Yah.” Mamm sounded puzzled. “I just had all my pastures redone in alfalfa last year, but that’s a gut thing, isn’t it?”

  “One would think so,” the vet responded, “but not always. It depends on how much your cattle can get to other kinds of feed.”

  Mamm took a moment before answering. “I guess I had the cows mostly on grass the last week or so. But we give them grain when we milk.”

  “I’d get them off the pasture for awhile,” the vet said. “This cow has a case of pasture bloat. How serious, I don’t know. Let’s lead her around and see how she walks.”

  “Bloating?” Mamm asked. “I don’t remember any such thing happening to my father’s cows.”

  “Your father may have kept several different types of pastures on his farm,” the vet said.

  “That could be,” Mamm agreed. “I don’t really remember.”

  The vet turned his attention back to Molly and slapped her on the backside. Molly groaned and lurched to her feet before lumbering forward a few steps. The vet studied Molly from behind and then walked around to the front. He bent down to check her mouth.

  “What do you think?” Mamm asked.

  The vet rubbed his jaw. “I was trying to decide how much of a risk we should take. If I leave without doing a rumenotomy and the cow gets much worse, I might not get back in time if you call me. Once they start to stagger or show real signs of distress, it’s often too late. Do you think you could do a small emergency procedure if things go badly? It’s not difficult or serious, but it would provide some relief for the cow until I can return.”

  “This would be a surgery, yah?” Mamm’s face looked distressed. “I don’t think I wish to tackle surgery.”

  A hint of smile played on the vet’s face. “I could show you, ma’am. It’s not that difficult, and you could call me afterward to come and sew it up.”

  The vet must know they didn’t have much money and was trying to help out, Katie decided. Could she do this surgery he spoke of? She could imagine herself with a knife held over Molly’s tough hide, trembling like crazy but trying to cut her way inside. Katie shuddered and looked at Mamm, who still wasn’t saying anything.

  “It might save you a lot of expense, ma’am,” the vet said. “Not to mention easing the discomfort for the cow. If I do the surgery now, all the bases are covered, but she might recover just as well by being led around the barnyard every thirty minutes or so until the gas is worked out.”

  “What is this surgery like?” Katie asked, finally finding her voice.

  The vet turned her way. “Are you brave enough to try it, then?”

  “I think so.” Katie heard the sound of her voice as if it were coming from off in the distance.

  “I certainly can’t do surgery on a cow,” Mamm decided. “And Katie is much too young.”

  The vet smiled. “It’s not that hard, ma’am. I think the girl would be up to the task. But as I said, surgery may not be needed. Just keep ’er walking until the gas has run its course.”

  “Well…” Mamm considered the idea. “Why don’t you explain this procedure to us then.”

  “Good.” The vet ran his hand over Molly’s back and pointed to her left flank. “Right here is where you would cut. I’ll mark it. Take a sharp knife and cut a two-inch long incision through the skin. From there you cut through the muscle and into the “rumen,” which is Molly’s first stomach. Be ready for what will happen next. A lot of air will explode outward. Keep your face away unless you want stinky gas blown into it.”

  “I’ll leave a syringe of local anesthetic and bandages…if you decide to undertake this task.”

  “You’ll mark the spot well?” Mamm’s hand was shaking.

  “Sure.” The vet pulled a purple marker out of his pouch. He drew a line where his finger had run over earlier.

  “After you make the incision,” the vet continued, “you call me. I’ll come out to sew her up. I hope you won’t have to make the cut. I think if you lead her around the barnyard for awhile, perhaps up and down a slight slope, that will work. It’s an old folk remedy, I know, but what’s wrong with trying?”

  “Yah, we will try that,” Mamm told him. “And thank you so much.”

  Katie patted Molly on the nose as she moaned again.

  The vet smiled. “I’m leaving our good cow here in the great care of two lovely ladies. The best of luck to you.”

  “Thank you,” Mamm said as Bossy banged on the barn door behind them.

  Katie waited until the vet had left, his truck tires crunching on the gravel. She led Molly out of the barnyard and toward a sloping embankment behind the barn. Mamm ran ahead and opened the gate.

  Looking over her shoulder, Katie saw Mamm shut the gate and shoo Bossy in front of her until they disappeared into the barn. How would they milk Molly tonight if she was in this condition? Katie wondered. That question could be solved later. The important thing at the moment was to follow the vet’s instructions.

  Above Molly’s left flank was the bright purple mark left by the vet’s pen. It appeared more ominous the longer she looked at it. Katie pulled her eyes away, and patted Molly on the nose. “We’ll not be plunging a knife into one of you
r stomachs if we can keep from it, Molly. I promise you. Let’s you and me walk up and down this bank and see if we can get rid of those ugly gasses inside you.”

  Molly seemed to understand as she followed Katie up and down the embankment. The bovine let out an occasional groan. On the third trip up, Molly let out a large belch and moved her mouth around like she was chewing her cud.

  “Phew!” Katie waved her hand in front of her face. “That stinks.”

  The smell lingered for a few minutes—a mixture of fresh grass and sour rot. Then Molly stopped in her tracks and refused to move.

  “Do you feel better?” Katie asked as she patted Molly’s side. She looked at the bulge on the left flank. It still seemed about the same size, but the belch showed progress.

  Katie pulled hard on the lead rope, finally getting Molly to move down the slope again. On the next walk up, another belch came. This time Katie jumped aside in time and turned her face in the other direction.

  Moments later Mamm appeared with an empty bucket and a three-legged stool.

  “How’s it going?” Mamm asked.

  “She’s belching some,” Katie said.

  “Good!” Mamm said. “I so hope we don’t have to cut into her.”

  “I know,” Katie agreed, bringing Molly back to the bottom of the embankment. She held the tie rope as Mamm, without further ado, sat down to milk. They made a mighty strange sight if anyone saw them from the road. Katie holding the cow outside the barn while the lady of the house milked her.

  Katie waited, growing more embarrassed by the minute as Mamm milked. She searched the road for any signs of buggies but saw none. This was another reason why they needed a man around, she thought. A man doing this wouldn’t seem nearly as silly as two women doing it. After this fiasco, how could she go in for supper and tell Mamm about her plans for tomorrow night? That conversation would have to wait. Mamm had enough worries on her mind with Molly being sick. And if Molly had to have the emergency surgery sometime tonight, there was no sense adding more drama to their lives. She would speak with Mamm in the morning.

  Molly belched again, swinging her tail.

  A smile crept across Mamm’s face.

  Chapter Twelve

  That night Katie awoke to the soft shaking of Mamm’s hand on her shoulder. She sat bolt upright, and the bedcovers went flying. The moon was shining through the upstairs window, revealing Mamm’s faint form standing beside the bed, kerosene lamp in hand.

  “Katie!” Mamm whispered. “Wake up. It’s time to check on Molly.”

  Katie climbed out of bed and followed Mamm. They’d talked about this last evening, so Katie had slept in her chore dress. She followed Mamm down to the kitchen. Mamm retrieved the flashlight from the top of the refrigerator. She set the lamp on the kitchen table, and they walked out into the bright moonlight.

  Mamm walked ahead of Katie, leading the way to the stall where they’d left the ailing cow. After a quick look with the beam of the flashlight, she said, “The swelling is up again.”

  Katie rushed over to look for herself. It was true. The swelling was almost back to where it had been before the vet arrived.

  “What shall we do?” Mamm asked. “Shall we get the knife and do the surgery the vet told us about?”

  Katie ran her hand over Molly’s left flank. “I’d like to try walking her again before we do any cutting.”

  “It’s the middle of the night,” Mamm said. “But this sort of thing comes with keeping a farm.” Katie opened the stall door and slipped the rope around Molly’s neck. She tugged hard. The cow moaned and stretched her neck but didn’t move her legs.

  “She’s already over-bloated,” Mamm said.

  “Let’s be quick!” Katie said. “Slap her on the backside. That might help.”

  Mamm whacked Molly with her hand. When that didn’t work, she pushed Molly’s rear, and the cow lunged to her feet.

  “Come, girl!” Katie spoke in soothing tones.

  Mamm ran ahead, the flashlight beam bouncing off the walls. She opened the outside barn doors. Katie arrived with Molly still moaning with every step. They stepped into the bright moonlight. Bossy raised her head from the middle of the barnyard where she was lying down. She mooed twice, the soft bellow causing Molly to lift her head higher.

  “Oh no you’re not. You’re not staying with her,” Katie said. “We’re going out back again.”

  Mamm raced across the barnyard to push open the side gate.

  Katie pulled Molly through before Bossy could get up and barge after them. Looking over her shoulder as she led Molly toward the embankment, Katie expected Bossy to already be leaning over the gate, stretching her long neck toward them.

  Mamm looked back at the same time. “Get back there, you silly thing! You’ll push our gate over.”

  Bossy jerked her head about as if she understood. She lumbered along the fence, following them for a short distance before giving up.

  Katie led Molly up the embankment. Mamm followed behind, ready to push if necessary. Molly belched halfway up the incline and seemed to move faster after that. Katie turned Molly around at the top, and they lumbered down again.

  “She’s coming along,” Mamm said when they reached the bottom. “I think I’ll wait for you here.”

  Katie repeated the trip. On the next round, Mamm took a turn. They traded off every second trip up while the other person sprawled out on the ground to rest. Katie’s heart throbbed as she watched Mamm climb the hill in the moonlight leading Molly. Now wide awake, she considered that now might be the time to mention the birthday invitation. They’d be too tired and rushed in the morning, and the party was the next evening. If not now then when? she reasoned.

  Molly belched again as Mamm turned her around at the top of the hill.

  Mamm laughed. “It’s working, Katie! I’m so thankful.”

  Moments later Mamm came down the embankment, the moonlight shining on her white kapp. Behind her, Molly was walking much faster now.

  Katie took the rope. She turned to Mamm. “Will you walk with me this time? I have something I need to talk with you about.”

  “Okay.”

  Katie led Molly up the embankment with Mamm beside her.

  Katie looked over at her Mamm’s face, the moon over her head revealing her features. “It’s hard for me to bring this up now, but I have to.”

  “What is it?” Mamm asked. “Have you done something you shouldn’t have?”

  “Not yet,” Katie said. “But I’m going to. Or, rather, it might be something you will think I shouldn’t do.”

  Mamm didn’t say anything for a few moments. She looked across the moonlit landscape. “You’re going to allow Ben Stoll to bring you home from the hymn singing?” Mamm finally said.

  “Nee,” Katie responded. “It’s not that. Besides Ben wouldn’t ask me home from a hymn singing.”

  “What is it then?”

  “Esther Kuntz told me I’ve been invited to a birthday party for Roy Coblenz, and I agreed to go.”

  “Who is Roy Coblenz?” Mamm had stopped and was staring at her.

  “A Mennonite boy.” She might as well admit the worst, Katie figured. Although it really would have been a lot worse if Roy were Englisha.

  Mamm’s voice cut through the darkness. “And he asked you to come to his birthday party? This Mennonite boy?”

  “Well…” Katie tried to keep her voice calm, but the moonlit fields seemed to be going around in circles in front of her eyes, making her dizzy and unsteady.

  “Well what?” Mamm asked.

  Katie pushed the words out. “Roy asked Esther to ask me. So I think it’s just an ordinary kind of invitation he gave to everybody. He probably wants to fill his yard with people.”

  “How does he know you?”

  Katie tried to move up the hill, but her head was swimming. “He spoke with me a little bit at Byler’s when he was in line to pay for his groceries,” Katie said. “That’s all he knows about me.”

  Mamm f
ace was now shadowed in the moonlight. “You know I’m not going to allow this, Katie.”

  Katie stopped and looked at her mamm. “I have to go, Mamm. And I want to. We can’t go on living so isolated forever. It wasn’t meant to be. I’m growing up. And Da Hah is opening this door for me. He is, Mamm. I know it.”

  “Growing up has nothing to do with this,” Mamm said, her voice firm. “Da Hah causes people to grow up, but He doesn’t make them attend Mennonite birthday parties. We have our own youth gatherings you can go to and that’s good enough.”

  “But you hardly ever allow me to attend those,” Katie protested.

  Mamm fell silent.

  “Will you allow me to attend the Amish youth gatherings if Ben Stoll brings me home on a Sunday night?”

  “So you do have a date with Ben? And you’re trying to get me to agree by making me believe there is something worse going on? Is that what you’re doing, Katie?”

  Katie had nothing of the sort planned, but she had to know what Mamm would say if she believed this was the truth. Would she agree to Ben Stoll bringing her home from an Amish hymn singing? Ben Stoll was a gut Amish boy, and there should be no objection. That would prove Mamm was only worried about the Mennonite aspect of the party. As Katie expected, Mamm took her silence as guilt.

  Mamm didn’t wait for confirmation before giving her answer. “That is also forbidden, Katie. I will not have you spending time in the company of that boy.”

  “What about some other Amish boy?” Katie asked. She knew the answer, but she wanted to hear Mamm say it.

  “It’s not possible that you have two invitations for the same night,” Mamm said. “But even if you did, I would not allow it.”

  So Mamm really was keeping all the doors shut on her social life, Katie thought. But Da Hah was opening them! All she had to do was walk through them. She would have to trust Him for the wisdom about walking through and finding out where they would lead.

  “You’re still young, Katie. You don’t understand the hurt boys can bring to your heart,” Mamm said. “I want nothing more than to save you from the pain I’ve been through. That’s all I’m trying to do.”