The Half-Stitched Amish Quilting Club

by Wanda E. Brunstetter

  They say bad things happen for a reason, he thought, recalling the phrase he’d heard some years ago. Nodding his head, he realized there could be some truth to it. It was hard for Stuart not to grin as he recollected the recent turn of events. He remembered how surprised he’d been by Pam’s reaction when the mishap had occurred with the hummingbird feeder. She’d appeared to be subdued on the way to the hospital, concentrating on traffic and getting him to the ER safely.

  Wanting to stay alert, Stuart hadn’t taken the full amount of his pain medicine this morning, so his finger was thumping like crazy with pain. He could ignore the discomfort, though, as he continued to recall the events of last night.

  The trip home from the hospital was when Stuart had gotten a real eye-opener. It was like floodgates opening, and once started, nothing could stop Pam’s tears. He still couldn’t believe all the frustrations and heartache Pam had kept bottled up about her relationship with her dad. It was as if all the tears she’d held in for years couldn’t be held back any longer. If he’d only known all this sooner, he’d have understood her better and realized why she felt the way she did about certain situations. Maybe things would have been different between them and not so combative at every turn.

  Stuart knew he and Pam still had a ways to go, but he felt confident that they’d reached a milestone last night. He’d looked at Pam with a sense of awe, just as he was doing now, and realized that she really did love him.

  And for himself, despite all their ups and downs, there’d never been any doubt of his love for Pam. He might not have shown it in ways she understood, but he’d always loved her. Never more so than he did right now.

  Although Stuart knew how hard it had been for Pam, the fact that she’d finally shared those things about her dad made him feel closer to her than ever before. It was a good dose of reality, coming to terms with how for all these years he’d been putting other things above his wife’s needs. He was glad they’d stayed up late last night, talking more about the past and their future. They should have been spending more time over the years really talking and listening to each other, rather than arguing and finding fault.

  He remembered hearing Paul say during one of their quilting classes that life goes by in a blink, so from now on, Stuart was determined to make a positive change.

  “Never thought I’d hear myself say this, but you know what?” he asked, gently stroking Pam’s arm.

  “What?”

  “Even though my finger hurts this morning, I’m actually happy to be going to our little half-stitched quilting club with you.”

  Pam smiled. “I’m glad.”

  “Did you remember to bring the plant you potted for Emma?”

  “Yes, I did. Earlier I put it in the back of the SUV so we wouldn’t forget to take it to her. I hope Emma likes it,” Pam added.

  “I’m sure she will. Oh, and I forgot to tell you—the little cooler in the backseat—there’s something in there for Emma.”

  “What is it?” she asked.

  “Thought maybe she’d like to try some of the wild berries I picked when I went camping last summer. I took one of the containers from the freezer to give to her. Do you think she’ll enjoy the berries—maybe bake something with them?”

  “Stuart, that was really thoughtful. I’m sure Emma will appreciate the berries, and since she’s always baking something, I’ll bet she’ll put them to good use.” Pam sighed. “You know, today’s going to be kind of sad with the classes ending. I’ve never been good at saying good-bye, and I’ve grown to know and like Emma so much, it’ll be hard to leave her.”

  “Well, maybe our paths will cross again. Maybe we can stop and visit her when we’re in Shipshewana sometime.”

  “That’s a good idea.” Pam smiled at Stuart with a look of happiness he hadn’t seen in a long time.

  The rest of the ride was quiet, but this time, it was more content and peaceful than all the other trips to Emma’s had been. Although things weren’t perfect between Pam and him, Stuart felt sure they were finally on their way to restoring their marriage.

  CHAPTER 36

  Shipshewana

  Emma stood in the living room, looking happily at her new table and eager to show it to Mary and others in her family. She still couldn’t get over Lamar’s thoughtfulness in making it for her. Mary had been right—he really was a nice man.

  The next time Lamar asks me to go somewhere with him, I should probably accept his invitation, she decided. Maybe I’ll even invite him to join us for supper when I have some of the family over next week.

  Emma’s musings halted when she heard a car pull in. She looked out the window, and when she saw that it was Star, she went to the door and opened it.

  “Morning,” Star said as she stepped onto the porch. “Looks like I’m the first one here.”

  “That’s right. You are. Come in, and we can visit until the others arrive.”

  Star followed Emma into the house, and when they entered her sewing room, they both took a seat. Emma was pleased to see that Star wasn’t wearing her black hooded sweatshirt today. She was dressed in jeans and a white T-shirt, sort of like what Jan usually wore.

  “How are you?” Emma asked, hoping Star’s anxious appearance didn’t mean she’d had a bad week.

  “I was pretty stressed-out for most of the week until I talked to my mom—which, by the way, wasn’t till she got home last night, because she’d been in Fort Wayne with the guy she plans to marry.”

  “Did you tell her about Jan and how you’d learned that he was your father?”

  “Yeah, and needless to say, she was pretty surprised.” Star frowned deeply. “Turns out that Mom lied when she’d said my dad had run out on us shortly after I was born.”

  “What exactly happened?”

  “Mom changed her mind about marrying him. Said she thought he was too wild and had decided that she didn’t really love him. So she took off with me and didn’t tell Jan or even her mom where she was going.”

  “Oh my!” Emma couldn’t imagine anyone running away like that, but Star’s mother was most likely young and very confused back then. And if she thought Jan was too wild, she’d probably done what she felt was right for her and Star at the time. Emma remembered all too well how when people were young, they thought differently, and unfortunately, it sometimes took years for them to realize their mistakes.

  “Now what?” Emma asked. “Are you going to tell Jan what your mother said?”

  “Definitely. I’m nervous yet anxious to see Jan today. I need to tell him I’m sorry for losing it last week and calling him a liar, among other things.”

  Emma placed her hand gently on Star’s arm. “I’m sure he’ll understand and accept your apology. I’m also certain he’ll be glad to know that you’ve spoken to your mother and have learned the truth.”

  “I sure hope so.” Star reached into her jeans’ pocket and handed Emma a folded piece of paper.

  “What’s this?” Emma asked, peering at Star over the top of her glasses.

  “It’s a song I wrote just for you. Wanted you to know how I feel about the way you’ve touched my life.”

  Emma opened the paper, noting that the song was entitled “You Saw Me.”

  “A lot of layers hide me,” Emma read out loud. “Disguise me … A shell of sorts to work through my pain. A stack of stories guard me … protect me; a trail of tales to keep me safe. But you looked beyond my past and stolen soul. You saw me; you looked beyond the masks and mirrors … saw me, and helped me face my faults and fears. When I was hiding, lost behind myself, you saw me.”

  Tears sprang to Emma’s eyes and blurred the words on the page. “Thank you,” she said, giving Star a hug. “The words you wrote are meaningful and beautiful. I’m so glad you came to my class, and even happier that you’ve found your dad.”

  Star nodded slowly. “Yeah, me too, and I can’t wait till he gets here.”

  Just then another car pulled in, and a few minutes later a knock sounded on
the door. When Emma answered it, she found Paul on the porch holding two paper sacks, a manila folder, and his camera.

  “It looks like you came with more than your quilting project today,” Emma said, smiling up at him.

  “That’s right, I did.” He handed her the manila envelope. “This is for you. Since today is our last class, I wanted you to have something to remember me by. I had my camera in the van last Saturday, and I took the picture before I headed home.”

  Emma opened the envelope and withdrew an eight-by-ten photo of her barn. Several of her goats were also in the picture, since their pen was near the barn. “This is so nice. Thank you, Paul.”

  “I have something else as well.” Paul reached into the paper sack and removed a package wrapped in foil. “Here are some tamales my sister, Maria, made. I hope you’ll enjoy them.”

  “Oh, I’m sure I will,” Emma said, feeling a bit choked up. “I never expected to receive any gifts today.” She motioned to Star. “She wrote a special song and gave it to me a few minutes before you arrived.”

  Star’s face reddened as she gave a brief shrug. “It wasn’t much.”

  “It was to me.” Emma slipped her arm around Star’s waist. “Maybe you’ll get one of your songs published someday.”

  “That would be nice, but I’m not holding my breath, ‘cause I’ve learned from experience that things don’t always go the way I’d like them to.”

  Emma smiled. “Well, let’s pray that this time they do.”

  “I brought this along, too,” Paul said, pointing to the camera and moving their conversation in a different direction. “Since it’s the last day of our class, I thought it would be nice to take a picture of everyone.”

  “You’re welcome to do that, but I won’t be able to be in the picture,” Emma said.

  “How come?”

  “Posing for pictures is frowned upon in my church. We believe it’s a sign of pride.”

  “That’s okay,” Paul said. “Maybe you could use my camera and take a picture of the six of us who’ve come to your class to learn quilting.”

  “That’d be fine. We can do that after everyone gets here,” Emma said.

  “Oh, before I forget, you’ll never guess who sent Sophia a package this week,” Paul said, beaming from ear to ear.

  “Who?” Star and Emma asked in unison.

  “My wife’s sister, Carmen.”

  “Paul, that’s wonderful.” Emma smiled, thinking this day seemed to be getting better and better.

  “Lorinda’s folks will be coming to visit us in a few weeks, and I’m anxious to tell them the good news, too. While Carmen may still think I’m to blame for Lorinda’s death, at least she’s acknowledging Sophia now.”

  Emma could see how pleased Paul was about this. “You know, Paul, before you arrived, I was getting ready to tell Star that I believe God has a plan for everyone’s life,” she said. “We don’t understand that plan all the time, but sometimes, later on down the road, we can look back and realize why things happened the way they did.” Emma knew that applied to her, too.

  “I know what you’re saying,” Paul agreed. “I’m going to keep praying for Carmen and trying to stay in touch. I’m also trusting God that she’ll eventually come around.”

  “I’ll be praying for that, too.” Emma gave Paul’s arm a light pat, and then hearing another car pull up, she went to the window.

  Ruby Lee arrived next and gave Emma four beautiful thimbles. Each one had the name of a different season on it, as well as a painted picture—a flower for spring; a sun for summer; an autumn leaf for fall; and a snowflake for winter.

  Emma thanked Ruby Lee for her thoughtful gift, and then Ruby Lee told how her husband had met with the church board the previous evening. “Gene agreed to set his plans aside for adding on to the church, and the board members were pleased to hear that,” she said. “So for now at least, Gene’s going to stay on as their pastor.”

  “That’s a good thing, right?” Star questioned.

  “I suppose, but it’s going to be hard to put all this behind us.” Ruby Lee frowned. “Too much gossip and hurtful things were said about Gene, and I still wish I could give a few of those people a piece of my mind. I’ve just been so crushed by all of this.”

  “Psalm 34:18 says, ‘The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit,’” Emma said.

  Ruby Lee nodded. “That’s right, and the New International Version of that verse says it this way: ‘The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.’ Guess I should take that verse to heart. Sometimes it’s hard to forgive and move on, but I know that as a Christian it’s what God expects us to do.”

  Paul nodded in agreement. “God chooses what we go through, but we choose how we go through it.”

  “I think I’d like to know more about this relationship you three have with the Lord.” Star looked over at Ruby Lee. “Would it be all right if I visit your church sometime? Maybe bring Jan along?”

  “You want to visit there even after all the negative things I’ve said about some of the people?”

  Star shrugged. “So who says anyone’s perfect?”

  “You’ve made a good point,” Emma said. “And another thing we need to remember is that anyone who has never tasted what is bitter doesn’t know what is sweet. The bad times really do help us remember to appreciate the good.”

  Another knock sounded on the door. “Would you like me to get it?” Star asked. “It might be Jan.”

  Emma smiled. “If you like.”

  When Star returned to the sewing room a few minutes later, Stuart and Pam were with her. Emma was surprised to see that Stuart wore a splint on the index finger of his left hand, but even more surprising was that his other hand held tightly to Pam’s.

  “What happened to your hand?” Paul asked.

  “I had a little accident with a hummingbird feeder. The broken glass cut the tendon in my finger, so now I’ll be facing surgery next week.” Stuart looked at Pam and smiled. “One good thing came out of it, though.”

  “What’s that?” Ruby Lee asked.

  “Pam started crying when she realized how bad my finger was, and I knew then that she really does care about me. We had a good long talk about some things, which also helped. And when we got home from the ER, she stayed up late finishing the quilting part of my wall hanging.”

  It was Pam’s turn to smile. “That’s right, and Stuart showed that he loves me, too, when he told me this morning that he plans to buy an RV we can all sleep in whenever we go camping.”

  Emma was pleased to see that things were going a little better in everyone’s lives. Now if Jan would just get here and respond favorably to Star’s apology, everything would be nearly perfect. Oh, Emma liked happy endings, and she hoped she would witness one today.

  “Pam and I both have something for you,” Stuart said. “Mine’s some frozen wild berries I picked when I went camping last summer, and Pam’s is a plant that she set on your front porch.” He grinned and handed Emma a paper sack he’d carried tucked under his arm.

  “That’s really nice. Thank you both so much.” Emma turned toward the kitchen. “I’ll just put these in the refrigerator while you all find seats.”

  When Emma entered the kitchen, she glanced at the clock on the far wall and realized it was fifteen minutes after ten. Since Jan still hadn’t shown up, when she returned to her sewing room, she suggested that they get started with the class and wait on taking their picture.

  As Emma showed everyone how to bind their quilted wall hangings, Star was barely able to concentrate on what was being said. She kept looking at the clock, and as time went on, she became even more concerned. Where is Jan? Maybe he’s not coming today. He’s probably upset about the things I said to him last week and doesn’t want to see me again.

  “I baked a couple of angel cream pies yesterday,” Emma said at around eleven o’clock. “Should we stop for a break and hav
e some now, or would you rather keep working on your wall hangings and have the pie at the end of our class?”

  “I’m really not hungry,” Star mumbled. “But the rest of you can do whatever you want.” She was convinced that Jan wasn’t coming. If he was, he would have arrived by now.

  Emma smiled sympathetically and offered Star a few comforting words. The others did as well, but as much as Star appreciated their concern, she still felt miserable. All her life she’d wished she could know her father. Now, even though she knew who he was, she was certain that she’d never get the chance to really know him.

  “I think we should keep working on our wall hangings and eat when we’re done,” Ruby Lee said.

  Everyone nodded in agreement.

  Each of them took turns using the battery-operated sewing machines, and Ruby Lee even tried out Emma’s old treadle machine, commenting on how much harder it was to use.

  “You’re right,” Emma agreed, “but once you get a feel for using the treadle, it won’t be so difficult, and who knows—you might even think it’s fun. I certainly enjoy using that old machine.”

  Shortly before twelve, everyone had finished binding their wall hangings, so Paul got out his camera and suggested they all gather for the class picture.

  Star shook her head. “I’m not in the mood. Besides, Jan isn’t here, and without him, it wouldn’t really be a class picture.”

  “I’m real sorry he’s not here,” Emma said, “but wouldn’t you at least like to get a picture of those of you who are here today?”

  Star really didn’t want to, but reluctantly, she finally agreed. She’d come here today without her hooded sweatshirt but wished now she’d worn it, because she was in a really black mood.

  “Let’s go outside to take the photograph,” Emma suggested. “It’s probably not light enough in here for a good picture.” She opened the door, and they all stepped onto the porch and struck a pose. Star was the only one not smiling. She just couldn’t force her lips to turn up when she felt so sad.

  After Paul showed Emma what to do with the camera, she stepped into the yard and was about to take the picture when Jan came trudging up the driveway, huffing and puffing. His arms and face were sweaty, and his clothes were covered with splotches of dirt.