“Hmm,” Beth responded. She tucked her empty suitcase under the bed. “Can you take me now?”
Becky’s eyes lit up. “You ready?”
“I’m ready. Let’s go.”
Chapter Two
The two of them wandered through the yard and down the drive. At the main road, Becky turned left, and Beth followed.
“It’s right over there,” Becky said.
Beth remembered the schoolhouse well from the day she had come to interview with the School Board. She would never forget Deacon Knepp’s stern face and sharp business-like tone. If not for the other, friendlier, board members, she might have turned tail and fled back home.
Beth stood before the schoolhouse taking it all in. The white clapboard building looked a bit worn, but not run-down. There had been evident care taken to the flower beds out front. A large willow tree swept across the side yard. To the left, she saw the beaten down grass where the children obviously enjoyed recess time. Her heart warmed. She simply couldn’t wait to get at it.
“Come on,” Becky said, motioning her forward. “I’ll show you where I sat last year.”
The entered the building, and Beth felt a sense of awe. It was as if the very walls reverberated with generations of children and their studious minds and hearts and their shy questions and their eager minds. Beth resisted a sudden urge to bow in prayer, wanting to wait until she was alone.
“Right here,” Becky said, her face glowing. “This is my spot. Do I get to sit in the same place this year?”
“Why Becky, I imagine you’ll have to switch to accommodate the grade below. You’ve moved up to fifth grade now, haven’t you?”
Becky nodded. “Jah. I’m in fifth grade now. Only three more years after that, and I’m done.”
Beth’s eyes widened. “Are you in such a hurry, then?”
“When I’m done with school, I’ll have my running around time, and then I’ll be baptized into the church.” Becky blushed slightly. “Then I can be married and have kinner of my own.”
Beth frowned slightly. “That you can, Becky,” she said. Inwardly, she winced at how quickly Becky planned to push her education aside. It bothered Beth, but it was not uncommon. Her own sister Mellie had been eager to be finished with school. Although now that Mellie ran her own sweet shop, she used her math skills daily.
Often, Beth yearned to have been able to continue with her schooling. She dreamed of what high school would be like. She imagined herself, elbow deep in books, studying at a library table. In her mind’s eye, she saw herself engaging in stimulating discussions about some new scientific discovery. But that’s as far as her imaginings went. She really had no idea what high school was like. Plus, she knew that she would be woefully out of place without any real knowledge of computers and such.
“Beth?” Becky questioned.
Beth gave a start. “Ach, I’m sorry, Becky. Did you say something?”
“Do you want to work a bit? Can I help you?”
Beth looked around. “You can grab that broom over by the wall and sweep up. I’d like to look through some of the workbooks.”
Becky skipped over to the broom. “I swept a lot for Roberta last year. She was our old teacher.” Becky leaned on the top of the broom handle. “She’s getting married. She told me. That’s why she’s not teaching anymore.”
Beth nodded, not surprised. She sat down at the teacher’s desk and allowed herself a moment to look out over the empty desks. In mere days, they’d be filled with students. Her students. She smiled and opened the top drawer of her desk, noting the pencils and red pen. There was also a handful of rubber bands, three erasers, a folded handkerchief, some loose paperclips, and a box of chalk. From the second drawer, she pulled out teacher guides to the workbooks.
She’d be teaching first grade through eighth grade, and if she remembered correctly, she’d have about twenty students. A right fine number.
“Excuse me?” a low voice came from the door.
Beth glanced up to see a man standing there, his felt hat in hand. He was slim, although his broad shoulders strained a bit under his blue shirt. He wore black suspenders and heavy black shoes. His beard was fairly long, but trimmer than many. She liked the looks of him. He appeared both friendly and steady.
“Can I help you?” she asked, rising from her chair.
“Hello, Timothy,” Becky said, pausing in her sweeping. “How’s Missy?”
Timothy smiled at Becky. “She’s right fine, Becky. If you want, you can stop by and play with her some.”
“I’ll do that,” Becky said. She went back to sweeping.
Beth walked across the school room and nodded in greeting. “I’m Beth Fisher, the new teacher.”
“I thought as much.” His hands worked the rim of his hat. “You’ll have my Missy and Frances. Missy’s seven, and Frances is six. She’s just starting and is mighty nervous.”
Beth nodded again, thinking that the father seemed nervous himself. She wondered at that.
“I just thought to stop and meet you. I’ll tell the girls.” He looked around the room before his startling blue eyes rested on her again. “I’ve got a boy, too. He’s only two, so you won’t be learning him for a few more years.”
Beth laughed softly. “I’d say not.” The idea of being there after a few years, still teaching, filled her with pleasure.
“All right, then,” Timothy said, heading back out the door.
“I look forward to meeting your wife,” Beth said, her tone friendly.
Timothy hesitated, and she saw the muscles in his back tense. He turned. “There isn’t no wife,” he said, his voice soft. “We lost her when Benny was born.”
Beth took a step back. “Ach, I’m so sorry. I didn’t know.”
“How would you?” Timothy stood motionless for a moment, then he blinked and tipped his hat. “I’ll be going now. Just wanted to meet the new teacher.”
“I’m happy to meet you, too,” Beth said. She walked back into the school, her mind whirling. Those poor little girls, losing their mother so young. Her heart went out to them. And little Benny. He would never know his mother.
Beth paused and looked back through the open door. She saw Timothy walking down the road now, his long stride purposeful. A sadness enveloped her, as if she knew the man well and shared his grief. She shuddered. How absurd. She didn’t know him. And most certainly not well enough to feel such heaviness for him.
But she did.
However, she didn’t trouble herself about it for long. The school books were waiting for her. She hustled back across the room to her desk. She sat again with immense satisfaction. She opened a bright red workbook, mentally taking note of how she wanted to begin her first day of assignments.
That evening, Beth sat alone in her daadi haus. A restlessness moved through her. Never in her twenty-two years had she stayed alone. She missed her sister, Mellie. In truth, she missed her entire family, even her difficult sister-in-law, Ruthie. Beth snickered. No, maybe that was taking it too far.
She’d spent two hours at the school, organizing things. She had her lessons sketched out, and she hoped she’d done it properly. She knew that often teachers spent time in classrooms as assistants before being given full responsibility. But she had assured the School Board that she would be fine.
Right then, she didn’t feel fine. She felt nervous and unsure. What if she hadn’t planned enough? What if the children didn’t like her? What if they wouldn’t do the work? What was she to do then? She shook her head. Of course, the children would do the work. She couldn’t remember one time in her eight years of schooling that a student had openly refused to do the work.
“Beth?” came a voice from outside the screen door.
“Wilma?” Beth went to the door.
“You settling in okay?” the woman asked. Her hazel eyes were wide and direct. “Can’t be having no issues now.”
Beth had no idea what she was referring to, so she simply smiled in return.
“Will any of your family be visiting you?” Wilma asked. “Last teacher had kinfolk coming all the time.”
Beth pondered the question for a minute. “Perhaps my sisters will come. Mellie and Faith. I don’t know. Mellie runs a sweet shop, so she doesn’t have much free time.”
“A sweet shop? Why, that’s right nice. She run it by herself?”
“Mostly. We all help out now and again, but it’s Mellie’s shop.”
“If they do come to visit, they’re welcome. Tell them that. And your mama? Will she come?”
Beth felt the familiar weight settle on her shoulders. “Nee. She suffers from arthritis. She doesn’t get about much.”
Or at all, was the real truth of the matter.
Wilma’s face crinkled with concern. “Ach, I’m sorry to hear that. Arthritis can be mighty troublesome.”
Troublesome wasn’t the word Beth would put to it. Her mother’s rheumatoid arthritis had basically incapacitated her. Even getting her to the family table was a major ordeal.
“I assume she’s taking herbs and such.”
Beth nodded. “Old Mae has been giving her different concoctions for years.”
“Help any?”
Beth shook her head. “Not so to notice.”
“Hmmm.” Wilma’s lips pressed together into a frown. “Has she been to an Englisch doctor?”
“Nee. She won’t go.”
Wilma blew out her breath as if she’d been holding it. “Gut for her. Speaking personal, I don’t approve of us Amish running to them Englisch. It ain’t fitting, and I can’t see as the Lord Gott would approve none.”
Beth kept a pleasant look on her face, holding in her growing annoyance. This woman didn’t know a thing about her mother. Not a thing. Mellie had been trying to get Mamm to go to the Englisch doctors for a long time. And Beth was all for it. It was easy to stand there giving opinions when you weren’t hurting so badly you couldn’t move your little finger without screaming.
“Glad to know your mama holds firm.” Wilma took a step back. “You let me know if you need anything.”
“I will. Thank you.”
Wilma paused. “Heard that Timothy Plank came by when you was at the school.”
“Jah. He did.”
“There’s a sad story.” Her eyes misted over. “The whole district was broken-hearted when we lost his gut wife. Ach, she was a fine woman. And leaving them children behind. Tsk. Tsk. Such a shame.”
Beth leaned against the doorframe.
“He’s a right gut father to them kids. His mama helps him take care of them.” Wilma put a finger to her lower lip and gave Beth a once over. “Now, he would be a wonderful husband to a girl. And them kids could sure use a new mama.”
It didn’t take much to realize where Mrs. Miller’s mind was going. Beth stiffened. She hadn’t come to Meadow Lark to find a husband.
“Food for thought, girl. Food for thought.” Wilma chuckled and left the porch, walking back to the big house.
Beth watched her go. Then she closed the screen door and went back to sit on the davenport. She laid her head back and closed her eyes. If she’d wanted to get married, she would have stayed in Hollybrook and married Caleb Glick.
Once again, she remembered her times with Caleb. He’d made her laugh more than once. She remembered on one of their last buggy rides when he’d pretended he was a screen actor. In truth, neither of them knew much about actors, but Caleb had pretended and Beth had laughed all the way to Edmund’s Pond. Pleasant memories.
But the memories weren’t all good. Seeing the glimmer in his eyes die when she’d told him about teaching had been one of the worst things she’d ever experienced. But if she’d married Caleb, she wouldn’t have gotten to teach at all. The Amish rarely hired married women because they were nearly always in the family way. Besides, her own district of Hollybrook didn’t need a new teacher, and Caleb wouldn’t have considered moving elsewhere.
Beth remembered her suspicions that Mellie harbored feelings for her beau. In the beginning, she’d tried to ignore them. But during that last youth singing, right before she had sneaked to Meadow Lark for her interview, she’d observed her sister more closely than usual.
Mellie’s gaze repeatedly went to Caleb, and there was such a look of longing on her face, that Beth’s throat tightened in pain. Mellie didn’t just harbor feelings for Caleb, she was in love with him. What was worse, Beth knew that Mellie loved Caleb more fervently than she did.
Caleb liked Mellie. Well, everyone liked Mellie. But Beth knew that given a chance, Caleb’s feelings would deepen, and he would grow to love her. Beth knew this instinctively, and she only hoped that Caleb would forget her and see her sister. Really see her.
Beth’s eyes remained closed as her mind wandered to Timothy Plank. Like Wilma said, she was sure he’d make a right fine husband. But she wasn’t interested. No. Not even a little.
Beth spent another half day at the schoolhouse. More than one mother came by to meet her, children in tow. Beth didn’t mind the interruptions one bit. In truth, she loved meeting her students, learning their names, and trying to remember the details their mothers shared with her.
She knew that young Tamera liked frogs and if her mother would let her, their house would be filled with the “filthy croaking animals.” Tamera had frowned at that, but when Beth gave her a sly wink on the side, the little girl grinned as if they shared a great secret. Beth determined to teach a unit on amphibians during the first month of school.
She learned that John couldn’t read a lick even though he was nigh onto seven years old. Beth’s heart sank as she watched John during his mother’s whispered assessment. Beth had put her hand on John’s shoulder and looked him square in the eye. “Well, we’ll have to do something about that, won’t we John?” She gave him an encouraging smile, but John dropped his gaze to the ground.
Then there was Prudence. She was the mother of three students. She spent quite some time giving Beth every detail she could regarding her children. She spoke forever, not coming up for air until Beth feared the woman might faint dead away from lack of oxygen. When Prudence finally gasped in a whooshing breath, she introduced her children. Beth nodded her greeting, and the four of them disappeared back out the door in a whirlwind.
Chapter Three
When Beth went back to the Miller’s for lunch, she was both exhausted and elated. Wilma looked up when she entered through the side door.
“How’d it go?” she asked, taking a steaming pot from the cooking stove.
“Fine,” Beth answered with a smile.
“There’s a work frolic tomorrow over at the Wagler’s. Did anyone mention it?”
“Nee.”
“Of course, you’ll come. Give you a good chance to meet everyone.” Wilma poured the steaming peas into a serving bowl.
“What’s the frolic for?”
“The menfolk are building a new shed, a sizeable one at that. And the womenfolk are going to do some canning. Now the kinner, why I expect they’ll be running around underfoot.” Wilma paused and gave a hearty chuckle. “As the new schoolteacher, you might want to plan a few games for them.”
“We could play kickball. Or if the children want, we can have some relay races.” Beth’s mind was already spinning with ideas.
“Sounds right gut to me.” Wilma handed Beth a pitcher of milk. “Can you go out and fill the glasses for me?”
“I’d be glad to,” Beth murmured, her mind fixed on Saturday’s frolic.
Early Saturday morning found Beth standing at her bedroom window, gazing out over the acres of rustling corn. She smiled, knowing after the harvest she’d be looking out onto fields of stumps. When she was a little girl, she’d loved to run among the fields right after harvest. She discovered many a snake hidden in those stubby cornstalks. Before she learned of her mother’s aversion to crawling things, she’d carted a snake or two home, holding them out in front of her like a long curled lock of hair.
“Ach! Get thos
e out of here!” her mamm would cry, running for cover.
But her brothers had appreciated her efforts, gladly taking them off her hands to torment each other, chasing wildly about the yard, holding them out like weapons.
Wilma informed her that their wagon would be leaving at nine o’clock sharp and that Beth needed to be on board and ready to go. Beth glanced at the small clock on her bedside table. She had plenty of time. The night before, she’d gathered some balls from a bin at the schoolhouse, so she was ready for the children. She wished she’d had time to bake some cookies for them as prizes. But surely, the Waglers would have something she could use for a special treat. From what she’d heard from Wilma, Mrs. Wagler was a wonderful cook.
Before heading to the big house for breakfast, Beth took extra care with her appearance. She made sure that her cape dress had no noticeable wrinkles and that she put on her crispest, whitest kapp. No doubt she’d be under scrutiny that day, and she wanted to make a good impression.
There was a small hand mirror on the dresser. When she was ready to leave, she picked it up and observed herself. There was a definite glimmer in her brown eyes, and she’d managed to get every curl pinned securely into her tight, chestnut-colored bun. Her kapp looked pristine. She smiled at herself, grateful that her teeth were straight, unlike her sister Faith’s. Although, there was a certain youthful appeal to Faith’s crooked front teeth.
Beth sighed. If she put any more effort into her looks, it could be considered vanity. She set the mirror down with a decided thump. Enough of all that nonsense. She squared her shoulders and walked outside toward the big house. Her stomach was a flutter with butterflies. She wondered if she’d be able to eat a thing come mealtime.
Beth reached down to help Penny into the wagon. Becky, Martha, and Susan were already squished together on the bench below the driver’s seat. Ephraim was at the helm, reins in hand. Andrew and Josh sat on the bed of the wagon, laughing and joking together.
Amish Romance Box Set: Finding Home Page 8
