A New Home for Lily (6 page)

L
ily's mouth watered when she saw Effie Kauffman's store-bought cookies. One side was white and the other side was dark brown. White frosting oozed out of the middle. Both sides had a pretty design. They were the most beautiful, delicious-looking cookies Lily had ever seen.

Beth had offered a piece of chocolate cake with thick, fluffy chocolate frosting in exchange for Effie's store-bought cookies. Lily peeped into her lunch box. She hoped she might find one of Mama's big chocolate chip cookies that she could trade with Effie for one of her pretty cookies, but there were no cookies today. Only a sandwich baggie filled with sliced apples. Lily sighed.

Tonight, she would ask Mama to make cookies so she would have something to trade tomorrow.

As soon as Lily arrived home from school that afternoon, she made a beeline to the kitchen to find Mama. Her heart
dropped when she saw a row of pumpkin pies cooling on the countertop. Mama was trying to use up her canned pumpkin before summer. On any other day, Lily would have been happy to see such a sight. But she knew that Mama would not want to bake cookies after she had already made pies and cleaned up the kitchen.

Instead, Mama had another suggestion. “You can take a pie to school tomorrow to share with your friends.”

What a horrible idea! “I don't want to take a whole pumpkin pie to school,” Lily said. “I only need one cookie to give to Effie so she'll give me one of her store-bought cookies.”

Mama didn't look very pleased. “It's good to want to share your things, but you should share without expecting or asking for anything in return.”

Lily went upstairs to change into her everyday clothes. She sat on her bed instead of going downstairs right away. Mama didn't understand. All the other children in school exchanged things whenever they saw something they wanted in someone else's lunch. No one had ever asked to trade for something in Lily's lunch. Right now, nothing seemed as important as being able to eat a pretty store-bought cookie. She flopped back on the bed. She would have to wait until the next time Mama baked cookies. She hoped Effie would keep bringing store-bought cookies to trade before school ended for the year.

The next morning, there was a grocery bag waiting on the kitchen counter beside Lily's and Joseph's lunch boxes.

Mama came into the kitchen as Lily peeped into the bag and saw a pie. “I got a pie ready for you to take to school,” Mama said. “I cut it into eight pieces for you and Joseph to share with your friends.”

Lily was mortified. No one ever carried a whole pie to school. She could just imagine what Aaron Yoder would say.
She was sure that she could never face anyone again if she had to carry an entire pie to school. “I don't want to take it to school.”

“It's not that heavy,” Mama said. “Joseph will take turns carrying it with you if you get tired.”

Lily didn't know how to explain to Mama that she didn't want to take a pie to school without hurting Mama's feelings.

Joseph was happy to take a pie to school. Pumpkin pie was his favorite. He couldn't wait to give a piece to his friends, Jay and Elam. As they walked down the road, each holding on to a handle of the grocery bag, Lily frowned. “Joseph, don't you realize how embarrassing it is to take a big pumpkin pie to school? We have to do something about this. Quick.”

That way of thinking was new to Joseph. He didn't embarrass easily. He was quiet for a while, then said, “We could
eat the pie before we get to school this morning and hide the pie pan under a tree in the woods. Then we could pick it up on our way home.”

Lily thought that was the smartest thing she had ever heard Joseph say. Ever.

Together they hurried into the woods and sat down by a tree. They set their lunch pails down, took the pie out of the bag, and started to eat a piece. They took another piece and ate it, a little more slowly. Lily was no longer hungry, yet there were still more pieces left. Joseph took his third piece. Lily wished that pies weren't so big. She took another piece and took a bite. She couldn't do it. She couldn't eat one more bite of pumpkin pie. It wasn't worth it. Putting it back into the pan she said, “Let's leave the rest of the pie here. We can eat it on the way home from school.”

They picked up their lunch pails and ran the rest of the way to school, arriving just as the second bell rang. They slid into their seats, breathing heavily. Lily felt a prickle of guilt as she thought of the pie that was hidden in the woods. Mama would not be pleased with what they had done, if she ever found out. Lily hoped, hoped, hoped Mama would never find out.

At noon, Effie took store-bought cookies out of her lunch. Lily thought they looked good, but she wasn't very hungry for desserts. She wasn't hungry for her sandwich either. Or her apples. She wondered how she could possibly eat more pie on the way home. Maybe, by then, she would be hungry again.

As soon as Teacher Rhoda dismissed school for the day, Lily and Joseph started up the road. Joseph was eager to eat the rest of the pie. His appetite was a constant source of amazement to Lily. When they got to the woods, they hurried to the tree where they had hidden the pie plate. They looked all around, but there was no grocery bag or pumpkin pie in sight.

“We must have left it under some other tree,” Joseph said. They walked around to other trees, but there was no pie. Lily started to feel worried. They couldn't go home and tell Mama what they had done. And the missing pie plate created a bigger problem. Mama took good care of her things. How could they tell her that they had lost her pie pan?

They looked and looked but still couldn't find the pie. They had to go home without it.

Lily put her lunch box quietly on the kitchen table. Mama was in the other room, sewing in her chair by the window. Lily tried to tiptoe to the stairs before Mama heard her, but Joseph was clomping around, making boy noises, as he pulled his shoes off. “Did the children enjoy the pie?” Mama called out.

“It was good,” Lily mumbled. She turned to quickly run upstairs to change her clothes before Mama could ask more questions.

Not fast enough.

“What did you say?” Mama said. She was in the kitchen now.

“The pie was good,” Lily said.

Mama pinned her with a look. “Did you forget to bring the pie pan home?”

Before Lily could think of how to answer, Joseph piped up. “No, we didn't forget. We couldn't find it because we couldn't remember which tree we had put it under.”

Oh, Joseph!
Lily thought.
What have you done?

“Why would you have put a pie pan under a tree?” Mama asked.

Lily gave up. It was no use trying to hide it. Out of Joseph poured the whole story.

Mama listened to everything. She laid the shirt she had been mending for Papa on the kitchen counter. You never saw
Mama lose her temper, but she didn't look happy. “We have to go find that pie pan,” she said in a low and steady voice. “I'll go hitch Jim to the buggy. Joseph, you come and help me while Lily gets Dannie up from his nap. You can show me where you think you hid it.”

Mama and Joseph headed out to the barn while Lily woke Dannie. The ride to the woods was quiet and Lily wondered what Mama was thinking. When they were nearly at the school, Mama got out of the buggy and led Jim to the edge of the woods to tie him to a tree.

In the woods, they spread out to look for the pie pan. It wasn't very long before Dannie let out a happy yelp. He had spotted the grocery bag under a nearby tree. Mama picked up the bag and looked inside. An army of ants covered the pie. “You ate this much all by yourselves?”

Lily nodded. They had eaten a lot of pie. There were only two and a half pieces left. She still wasn't hungry. She didn't think she would ever be hungry again.

They returned home just as Papa was coming home from work. He looked surprised to see them come up the driveway. Mama got out of the buggy and handed the reins to Papa. “The children can tell you all about their day while you do the chores,” she said. “I need to go get supper started.”

Naturally, Joseph reported everything they had done. He didn't leave anything out. Lily thought it looked as if Papa wanted to laugh when he heard how much pie they had eaten. He looked even more amused when he heard that it was Dannie who finally found the pie pan.

That evening, Papa, Mama, and Dannie each had a piece of pumpkin pie for dessert. Lily and Joseph weren't served any. Papa said they had probably had enough pie for one day.

Lily couldn't have agreed more. Joseph was disappointed.

I
t was a rainy day in May. Teacher Rhoda stood at the front of the class. “Third grade geography class,” she said.

Lily glanced across the aisle. As usual, Aaron Yoder was making a lot of noise. He hunted for his geography book buried in his desk while trying to hide some kind of cardboard project. He was up to something. Aaron was always up to something.

The other third graders had found their books and filed to the bench at the front of the room. They waited patiently for Aaron to join them.

Lily was glad that Aaron wasn't in her grade. He was the most annoying, exasperating boy in school. It was bad enough that he sat directly across the aisle from her. It would have
been too much if he were in her grade too. A person could only bear so much.

Lily turned her thoughts back to her own book, blocking out the lively discussion that was coming from the geography class. It didn't seem very long until the third graders were back in their seats and working on an assignment. All except Aaron. He had come back to his desk, stuffed his book back inside, and gone right to work on his secret cardboard project. Lily thought it might teach him a lesson if Teacher Rhoda made him stay after school to finish his geography assignment.

Lily tucked her books in her desk. She was finished with all her lessons and had some free time to read a storybook. She settled down comfortably to start reading when something whizzed past her. It bumped into the wall next to her and landed on the floor. She leaned over to see Aaron's contraption. He had made wheels and fastened them to a small cardboard box. It looked like a cardboard wagon.

“Give it back to me,” Aaron hissed at Lily.

Lily shook her head. It was just out of her reach against the wall and she was not going to break a rule by leaving her desk without permission. Aaron scowled at her. He waited until Teacher Rhoda turned her back, then he slipped quietly out of his desk and picked up his little wheeled box.

Back in his seat, Aaron turned the wheels again until the long, narrow strip of paper inside the box was wrapped tightly around the axle. He set it down on the floor again and pointed it in a different direction. It went whizzing up the aisle to Teacher Rhoda's desk at the front of the room.

Lily held her breath. As much as she thought it would serve Aaron right to get into trouble, she still hoped Teacher Rhoda had not seen what he was doing.

She saw.

Teacher Rhoda glanced at the clock. “Put your books away. It's time for school to dismiss. Whoever sent this little box flying up the aisle can come pick it up.”

No shame. Aaron had no shame. He jumped out of his desk to retrieve the box. Beth's job was to walk around the desks with the trash can so everyone could throw their trash and paper scraps into it before going home. After Beth returned to her desk, the pupils sang a little parting song and it was time to be dismissed. But instead of dismissing them all like she usually did, Teacher Rhoda asked Aaron to stay. “Everyone else may go.”

Lily hurried to get her bonnet and lunch box and join Joseph outside the schoolhouse. She felt a tiny twinge of pity for Aaron. It would not be fun to have to stay after school. She wondered what Teacher Rhoda was going to do to Aaron. Maybe, she would dump the trash can on his head like Teacher Katie did once to Levi, Lily's cousin. But that didn't seem like something Teacher Rhoda would do.

The other children ran home while Lily and Joseph walked slowly like they always did. They were about halfway home when they heard loud footsteps grow closer and closer. Lily turned around to see Aaron splash in every puddle he passed. He even ran loud. Everything about Aaron was loud.

As he passed them, he reached out and knocked Lily's lunch box from her hand so that it crashed on the road. Her thermos spilled out. So did her empty little dish and spoon. She gathered them up and tucked them carefully back inside. That tiny twinge of pity she had felt for Aaron Yoder quickly evaporated, like a wisp of steam from a teacup. Now she wished Teacher Rhoda
had
dumped a trash can on his head. He deserved that and more. She closed the lid and picked her lunch box up. The lid popped open and everything spilled out again.

The latch was broken.

Now Lily was angry. She gathered everything back up and closed the lid. She had to put her finger against the lid to keep it from popping back open as she carried it the rest of the way home.

As soon as she got home, she showed it to Mama. After examining the latch, Mama said, “I don't think this can be fixed, but there are only a few more weeks of school left this year. You can use it like it is and then we'll buy you a new one before school starts next fall.”

That made Lily feel a little bit better, but she wasn't looking forward to having to hold the lid shut every day on the way to and from school.

The next morning, Mama got a big rubber band out of her desk drawer and stretched it around the lunch box to keep the lid shut. Lily didn't think it looked very nice, but it was better than having to hold it.

At noontime, the students hurried to get their lunch boxes off the shelf at the back of the schoolhouse. In his loud voice, Aaron said, “Look at Lily's lunch box. She has to use a rubber band to hold it shut because her parents are too poor to buy a new one.”

Lily wanted to smack Aaron.
Hard
. It was the first time she had ever wanted to hit someone at school. She had often wanted to say bad things to Effie and Mandy Mast—a girl from New York—when they were rude, but this was worse. Aaron was making a jab at Papa and Mama.

Lily hurried back to her desk with her lunch. She stripped the rubber band off and placed it on her desk beside her lunch box. Suddenly, Aaron snatched it off her desk and snapped it at one of his friends on the other side of the schoolhouse. Teacher Rhoda saw what was happening and made Aaron return the rubber band to Lily.

Lily finished eating her lunch and slipped the rubber band around her lunch box again. It wasn't fair. It was Aaron's fault in the first place that she had a lunch box with a broken latch and had to use a rubber band to keep the lid from falling open.

She knew Papa and Mama said it was important to forgive people who weren't nice, but she didn't think they had ever met anyone as not nice as Aaron Yoder. He was
mean.