Jojo worked for them full-time now. She and Sophia had rented a tiny house between here and Camilla’s. Sophia loved her grandmamma, and the little girl thrived, learning music under Camilla.
Rhoda rushed through the last bits of getting ready, and within five minutes she was walking out the front door. The van doors were open, the children were strapped inside, and Samuel stood in the yard nearby talking to …
Rhoda grinned. “Jacob King! What are you doing here?”
He turned, smiling. “Well, look at you, Rhodes. You’re a little thinner since the last time I saw you.”
“I hope so.” She’d been eight months pregnant when she’d seen him last. “Where is your wife?” The two were just about inseparable. But maybe he’d chosen to come alone in order to protect her.
Jacob gestured toward the van, and Esther came around the side of it. “I was admiring your daughter.” Esther hugged her, and Rhoda had a surge of joy go through her. Maybe it’d been the brief glance she’d witnessed between Jacob and Esther, but Rhoda was sure Esther was expecting. Jacob hugged Rhoda, and when they parted, Rhoda grasped Esther’s hands. “I didn’t know Jacob was coming, but when I saw him, I thought maybe you’d stayed home this time.” She squeezed her hands and then released them.
Esther looped her arm through Jacob’s. “If he’s in trouble, I’m in it with him. But we didn’t know you guys had decided to go until Jojo picked us up. Does Leah know any of us are coming to her wedding?”
“Not yet.” Samuel rested his hands on Rhoda’s shoulders. “No one around here knows we’re going, including Crist and Iva.”
It’d been one thing to help Leah establish a store before she moved out of the farmhouse and before she’d told her father and the community that she didn’t intend to join the faith. But to condone a union between an ex-Amish woman and an Englisch man by celebrating their wedding day with them could be far, far more punishable.
Rhoda slid her arm around Samuel’s back. “Keeping our plans private was our only way to avoid the Amish boycotting her store before or after her wedding. When we’re questioned by the church, we’ll make it clear that Leah and Landon are innocent in what we’re about to do.”
“We should go.” Samuel caught Rhoda’s eye and held her gaze. “Whatever the cost of attending, I don’t want to miss a minute of the wedding.”
Rhoda paused, letting the others get into the van ahead of her and Samuel. As she looked across the farm, taking in the view, she sensed that through the years, love and faith would do far more than just see them through the good times and bad. It would rise to meet every challenge with joy and hope.
Samuel held out his hand to her. “You ready?”
She put her hand into his, feeling more than just ready for whatever was ahead. She was happy to embrace it.
APPLE SCONES
1⅔ cups all-purpose flour, plus some for patting out the dough
1⅓ cups old-fashioned rolled oats, plus some for topping
½ cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 teaspoons baking powder
¾ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1½ sticks cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1½ cups peeled and diced Granny Smith apples (about two apples)
⅔ cup cold buttermilk
raw turbinado sugar for sprinkling over scones (Turbinado sugar is simply raw sugar.)
Preheat oven to 400°. Combine all dry ingredients (flour, oats, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking powder, baking soda, salt) in a large mixing bowl with a whisk. Cut in cold butter with a pastry blender, or with your fingers, until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add the apples and buttermilk, stirring until the dough just comes together. Divide the dough in half, and place both halves on a lightly floured surface. Pat dough into two circles, about two inches in thickness. Cut each circle into 6 wedges to make 12 scones. Using a spatula, gently lift scones onto nonstick baking sheets, leaving about two inches between them. Sprinkle the tops with oats and raw sugar. Bake 20-30 minutes or until golden brown. After removing from the oven, let the scones cool on the sheets for about 10 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Main Characters in Seasons of Tomorrow
Rhoda Byler—A young Amish woman who is skilled in horticulture and struggles to suppress the God-given insights she receives. Rhoda and Jacob King were courting when Samuel King fell in love with her.
Samuel King—The eldest of three sons. Loyal and determined, he’s been responsible for the success of Kings’ Orchard since he was a young teen.
Jacob King—The irrepressible and accepting middle brother. He worked among the Englisch and had a tangled past before he courted Rhoda.
Dora Beachy—A twenty-year-old Amish woman who lives in Virginia and goes out with Jacob.
Esther Beachy—A twenty-seven-year-old Amish woman who lives in Virginia and befriends Jacob. She is Dora’s older sister.
Bailey Hudson—A fifty-two-year-old non-Amish man who owns Hudson’s Decorative Ironwork. He is a longtime friend of Esther Beachy’s.
Althea Hudson—Bailey’s wife.
Leah King—The eldest King daughter and the only one who moved to Maine with her older brothers Samuel and Jacob to help establish a new orchard.
Landon Olson—A single, non-Amish man who has worked as Rhoda’s assistant and driver for several years. He’s a loyal friend of Rhoda’s who has reluctantly and with many reservations fallen in love with Leah.
Erlene—Landon’s grandmother, whom he calls Granny.
Steven Byler—Rhoda’s older brother who moved to Maine to help found the new Amish community.
Phoebe Byler—Steven’s wife.
Isaac Byler—Steven and Phoebe’s son.
Arie Byler—Steven and Phoebe’s daughter.
Emma Byler—Rhoda’s younger sister, who was murdered several years ago.
Iva Lambright—A twenty-one-year-old Amish girl from Indiana who moved to Maine to work the orchard.
Eli King—The youngest of the King brothers. He remained as the caregiver of the storm-torn orchard in Pennsylvania when his brothers moved to Maine.
Benjamin King—The father of Samuel, Jacob, Eli, Leah, and their two younger sisters, Katie and Betsy. He runs the family’s dairy farm.
Mervin King—Benjamin’s brother. He’s an Old Order Amish preacher in Lancaster and owns a construction company that Jacob sometimes works for.
Karl Byler—Rhoda and Steven’s father.
Crist Schrock—One of the single Schrock men who moved to Maine with his family after the Kings and Bylers founded the Amish settlement about nine months earlier.
Catherine Troyer—Samuel’s former girlfriend. She’s also the sister of Arlan, a friend of Leah’s.
Rueben Glick—A young Amish man. He destroyed Rhoda’s fruit garden in book one, A Season for Tending.
Glossary
ach—oh, alas
alleweil—now
begreiflich—easy
Bischt du allrecht?—Are you all right?
Daadi Haus—grandfather house
Daed—dad or father (pronounced “dat”)
denki—thank you
Duh net geh neh die Haus.—Do not go near the house.
Du hungerich?—Are you hungry?
Du muscht net kumm im.—You must not come in.
Eens. Zwee. Drei.—One. Two. Three.
Englisch—a non-Amish person
Es iss Zeit esse. —It’s time to eat.
geh—go
Geh zu die Scheier.—Go to the barn.
Gern gschehne.—You’re welcome.
gross dank—many thanks
guck—look
gut—good
hallo—hello
Hausfraa—housewife
Heemet—home
Ich bin do.—I am here.
Ich bin ganz gut.—I am quite good.
Ich bin hungerich. —I
am hungry.
Ich lieb du.—I love you.
iss—is
Kann Ich helfe?—Can I help?
Kapp—a prayer covering or cap
kumm—come
Mach’s gut—literally, “make it good” but used as “take care,” “so long,” “good-bye”
Mamm—mom or mother
nee—no
Ordnung—means “order,” and it was once the written and unwritten rules the Amish live by. The Ordnung is now often considered the unwritten rules.
Pennsylvania Dutch—Pennsylvania German. Dutch in this phrase has nothing to do with the Netherlands. The original word was Deutsch, which means “German.” The Amish speak some High German (used in church services) and Pennsylvania German (Pennsylvania Dutch), and after a certain age, they are taught English.
rumschpringe—running around. The true purpose of the rumschpringe is threefold: to give freedom for an Amish young person to find an Amish mate; to give extra freedoms during the young adult years so each person can decide whether to join the faith; to provide a bridge between childhood and adulthood.
Willkumm. Es iss gut du kumm.—Welcome. It’s good you came.
Wunderbaar—wonderful
ya—yes
* * *
* Glossary taken from Eugene S. Stine, Pennsylvania German Dictionary (Birdsboro, PA: Pennsylvania German Society, 1996), and the usage confirmed by an instructor of the Pennsylvania Dutch language.
Read an excerpt from these books and more on
WaterBrookMultnomah.com!
Also from
CINDY WOODSMALL
The Sisters of the Quilt series
The Ada’s House series
Read an excerpt from these books and more on
WaterBrookMultnomah.com!
Read an excerpt from these books and more on
WaterBrookMultnomah.com!
Seasons of Tomorrow Page 35
