A Man of His Word
Advance Praise for
A Man of His Word
“A fresh and captivating voice in the Amish genre, Kathleen Fuller weaves a richly patterned story that explores not only the depths of the Amish faith but also the most intimate struggles of the heart.”
—Tamera Alexander, best-selling author of
The Inheritance
,
Beyond This Moment,
and
From a Distance
“For romance fans, Kathleen Fuller provides a double-dose in
A
Man of His Word
. [R]eaders will enjoy the peaceful setting . . . Fuller puts you in the heart of Middlefield, Ohio and her details about this Old Order Amish community left me feeling like I was an onsite spectator among her well-drawn characters. I highly recommend . . .”
—Beth Wiseman, best-selling author of
Plain Perfect
“
A Man of His Word
by Kathleen Fuller is heartwarming story of how faith and commitment can overcome betrayal. Highly recommended!”
—Colleen Coble, best-selling author of
Cry in the Night
and the Rock Harbor series
“Terrific! I was totally engaged in the characters and the families in this lovely story. With Gabriel as the hero, the title is certainly well chosen. His faith, along with Moriah’s, represents a steady, underlying conviction and peacefulness despite the very real struggles they face within the pages. This is a story—and characters—I didn’t want to leave.”
—Maureen Lang, author of
My Sister Dilly
A Man of His Word
To Maria . . .
Danki
.
© 2009 by Kathleen Fuller
All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, scanning, or other—except for brief quotations in critical reviews or articles, without the prior written permission of the publisher.
Published in Nashville, Tennessee, by Thomas Nelson. Thomas Nelson is a registered trademark of Thomas Nelson, Inc.
Thomas Nelson, Inc., titles may be purchased in bulk for educational, business, fund-raising, or sales promotional use. For information, please e-mail [email protected].
Scripture quotations are from the King James Version of the Bible.
Publisher’s Note: This novel is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. All characters are fictional, and any similarity to people living or dead is purely coincidental.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Fuller, Kathleen.
A man of his word : a hearts of Middlefield novel / Kathleen Fuller.
p. cm.
ISBN 978-1-59554-812-2 (softcover)
1. Middlefield (Ohio)—Fiction. 2. Amish Country (Ohio)—Fiction. 3. Amish—Social life and customs—Fiction. I. Title.
PS3606.U553M36 2009
813’.6—dc22
2009020423
Printed in the United States of America
09 10 11 12 13 RRD 6 5 4 3 2 1
A Note from the Author
A
Man of His Word
is set in the lovely village of Middlefield, Ohio, located in Geauga County in northeast Ohio. About forty minutes east of the city of Cleveland, Middlefield is the fourth largest Amish settlement in the world, making up 12 percent of the county’s population. The Amish established themselves here in 1885, when David Miller, in search of cheaper farmland, moved from Holmes County, Ohio, to the Middlefield area.
Middlefield’s slogan, “Where Industry Meets Agriculture,” neatly describes this pleasant town. Amish buggies share the gently sloping roads with “Yankee” cars and motorcycles. Modest white houses and barns dot the landscape amid large businesses like Middlefield Cheese House and Dillen Products. Shops producing handcrafted Amish goods are as easy to find as the local CVS pharmacy and Wal-Mart.
Many of the Middlefield Amish, like the Lancaster County Amish, are Old Order. While both the Middlefield and Lancaster settlements are divided into districts, each with its own
Ordnung
—an unwritten set of rules members abide by—there are noticeable differences in buggy style, dress, and cultural influence. In Middlefield non-Amish are referred to as Yankees, while in Lancaster they are called
Englischers
. A Lancaster Amishman might drive a gray-colored buggy, while Middlefield buggies are always black. A Middlefield woman’s prayer
kapp
at first glance might look the same as a Lancaster
kapp
, yet upon deeper inspection one realizes they are of differing design. There are also varying guidelines for the use of technology. While these superficial differences are evident among all Amish settlements, they do not detract from the main tenets of the Amish faith—a desire to grow closer to God, the importance of family and community, and living a plain and humble lifestyle.
With the help of some extremely generous Amish and Yankee friends, I have tried to portray the Amish in Middlefield as accurately and respectfully as possible. If there are any mistakes or misconceptions in my story, they are of my own making.
I hope you enjoy
A Man of His Word
as much as I enjoyed writing it. If you are ever in the northeast Ohio area, I invite you to visit Middlefield and experience everything this wonderful village has to offer.
Kathleen Fuller
Pennsylvania Dutch Glossary
Ausbund:
hymnal
bann:
excommunication from the Amish
Biewel:
Bible
boppli:
baby
braut:
bride
bruder:
brother
daed:
father
dawdi haus:
a separate dwelling built for aging parents
danki:
thank you
dochder:
daughter
dummkopf:
dummy
Frau:
wife, Mrs.
Fraulein:
unmarried woman, Miss
fehlerfrei:
perfect
geh:
go
grossdochder:
granddaughter
gude mariye:
good morning
gut:
good
Herr:
Mr.
kapp:
an Amish woman’s prayer covering
kind:
child
maedel:
girl
mei:
my
mami:
mother
mudder:
mother
nee:
no
nix:
nothing
Ordnung:
an unwritten set of rules members abide by
recht:
right
reck:
coat
rumspringa:
the period between ages sixteen and twenty-four, loosely translated as “running around time.” For Amish young adults,
rumspringa
ends when they join the church
schwei:
sister-in-law
schwester:
sister
schwoger:
brother-in-law
sehr:
very
seltsam:
weird
sohn:
son
Wie geht’s:
How are you?
willkum
: welcome
wunderbaar:
wonderful
ya:
yes
Yankee: a non-Amish person
yank over: to leave the Amish faith
He healeth the broken hearted,
and bindeth up their wounds.
Contents
