Amish Circle Letters II: The Second Circle of Letters (16 page)

“Boys helping ok with the farm work,
ja
?” Menno asked, pausing for just a moment before he added, “You need anything, you just ask. Family takes care of family.” His eyes stole another quick peek at his wife and, with the slightest hint of a smile, he nodded his head at her before disappearing back outside the house and into the cold.

A moment of silence befell the room. The clock ticked on the wall and a horse whinnied from outside. Rachel stared at her sister, her mouth all but hanging open. “
Well,” she finally mustered enough courage to say. “Reckon things are right as rain in this house,
ja
? It sure appears that way.”

Mary Ruth blushed and turned away so that her back was now facing her sisters. She didn
’t care much for the insinuation but she also knew that the last time she had spoken to her sister, there had been problems between her and Menno. Now, it was clear that the newly-married couple had worked out their communication issues. There was happiness in the home at last.

“I
’m sure I don’t know what you are talking about,” Mary Ruth mumbled, reaching for the strainer that was on the counter and putting it into the sink.

Leah fluttered her hand at Rachel. “Leave her be, Rachel,” she said. “I
’m sure Menno is right happy to have his
fraa
back home…and safe, at that.”

“Oh, I can see that,” Rachel quickly concurred.

They watched as Mary Ruth started to drain the curds in the strainer, using her hands to break up the pieces into smaller bits. Then, she used some cheese salt on the curds, mixing it well before placing the curds into a cloth lined plastic mold.

“Raising a new barn in two weeks,” she said while pressing the curds into the mold. “Can
’t wait much longer. It’s ever so inconvenient for the neighbors to house our cows, although he’s most glad to be able to do it.”

Rachel nodded.
“Ja, I’m sure he is glad but raising a barn is better, especially with the cold weather upon us. That’s a long walk twice a day and if it snows…” Her voice trailed off and she shook her head, her tongue clicking a
tsk tsk
in her mouth

Shaking her hands into the sink, Mary Ruth glanced over her shoulder. “You
’ll spread the word,
ja
? Get the rest of the family together.”

Rachel knew what that meant: lots of cooking and lots of preparations. It would be a very busy day and, if all went well, not too much of a cold one. The women in the community would bring fresh bread and pies, canned goods and jams. There would also be the need for volunteers to cook fried chicken and baked meatloaf and plenty of side dishes to keep the men full and working hard. Even if the weather held out, they would need to serve the men plenty of hot coffee to keep them warm. But, with enough volunteers to help out, they
’d be able to raise a nice new barn in just one single day. At least the outside shell. The inside would be left for Menno to finish as per his own requirements.

“Such a shame that,” Leah said casually. “Still wonder what caused this awful fire.” She shivered, the memory still fresh in her mind, remembering too well having seen that fire from her own home.

Mary Ruth stiffened her spine, her jaw tensing for just a brief moment. Leah didn’t notice but nothing could escape Rachel’s watchful eye. She had learned long ago to recognize the subtle signs in her own
kinner
, to know when something wasn’t being said. In that way, her younger sister was no different than them.

“What is it then, Mary Ruth?” she asked.

“Nothing.” Mary Ruth quickly replied.

But Rachel knew better than that. She could see that Mary Ruth was hiding something. Something about the fire that still upset her but that she didn
’t wish to share. For a moment, she considered pressing her but, with Leah in the room, she eventually thought better of that idea. It would do no good to have Mary Ruth confide in her with Leah present.

Mary Ruth sat next to Menno in the buggy, a warm blanket over her legs as she snuggled against him. It was cold, that was for sure and certain, but she found that she didn
’t really mind it. No, indeed, for the cold permitted her to sit closer to her husband, her leg pressed against his and his free hand covering hers under the blanket, the pretense for keeping her hands warm.

She had been home just over a week and each day seemed to get better than the last. After her first night home, she had recognized the change in Menno. His eyes sparkled and he stole secret kisses from her when the
kinner
were not around. Sometimes he’d even wake up early and bring her a cup of hot coffee, setting it on her nightstand before he would sit down beside her, tracing a soft line across her cheek. Her eyes would flutter open and she’d see him staring at her. Immediately, a blush would cover her cheeks at his attention. But she enjoyed it.

Each and every morning since returning home, she attempted to arise with him in order to accompany him to the neighbors
’ farm where their cows were temporarily housed. She wanted nothing more than to help him with the chores. Selfishly perhaps, she just wanted to be near him, to surround herself with his presence and his attention. But, each morning, he insisted that she’d stay snuggled in their bed until the morning chill in the kitchen dissipated.

She felt lazy and uncomfortable, staying in bed when there was work to be done. So, as soon as she heard the outside door shut, she would hurry out of bed and quickly dress by the dim light of the oil-burning lantern sitting on her dresser. Unlike at her sister-in-law Anna
’s house, Menno did not keep battery-operated lights around. Instead, he maintained the old custom of candles and oil-burning lanterns. Despite the near tragedy in the barn, Mary Ruth found that she much preferred the old-fashioned lanterns over the more modern convenience of the Englische lights and battery-operated gadgets.

The
kinner
would get up almost an hour after Menno left. Melvin no longer helped his
daed
with the morning chores for it would have delayed his arrival at school. But, in the afternoons, he would stop at the neighbor’s barn to help with the mucking and evening feeding. He remained quiet and aloof, his face long and pale. Indeed, Melvin had not been quite the same since the fire had consumed his
daed’
s barn.

Each day, Mary Ruth had been watching him, mindful of what she knew –what they
both
knew- but refusing to discuss the issue with her stepson.
What’s done is done
, she would tell herself. What’s done is done. And besides, the end result, a brand new barn awaiting a raising, was more than she could have hoped for. She saw no reason to address either the cause of the fire with Melvin, or the fact that he had stolen the verses that she had handwritten on little notes intended for Menno’s eyes only. That was something she would leave to his
daed
to handle when he felt the timing was appropriate.

“You are warm then,
ja
?”

Startled out of her thoughts by the familiar sound of his voice, Mary Ruth turned her head to look at Menno and felt the heat rush to her cheeks when she saw him watching her out of the corner of his eye. “
Ja
,” she said and smiled when she felt him squeeze her hand.

“Was nice of your sisters to stop over. Did you ever mention the barn raising?”

She nodded. “
Ja
, I sure did,” she responded. “They will all be coming, of that I’m certain.”

“I
’ll be glad to have the dairy back. Sure don’t like burdening our neighbors. We certainly owe them a great deal.”

She completely understood how he felt. She had never liked to feel beholden to anyone. And she also knew that it was extra work for Menno to have to take care of the cows at the neighbor
’s farm, which he always did spending some extra time helping them with their own chores as a gesture of gratitude

Their first stop was at the natural food store along the back roads of Leola. Mary Ruth waited for Menno to fasten the horse to the hitching rail before she moved to the open door where he waited to help her down from the buggy. They walked side by side into the store. Menno took the shopping cart and pushed it while Mary Ruth walked down the aisle, picking the items she needed. They started in the fresh fruit and vegetable section, Mary Ruth putting lettuce, cucumbers, tomatoes, and beans into the cart.

“Mary Ruth?”

She turned, surprised to hear a familiar voice call out her name.

“Mimi!” She greeted her sister-in-law with a big smile. She hadn’t seen her since before the fire. She had heard that Mimi was moving to live on husband Steve’s farm and, since her cart was quite filled with food, she could only presume that the move had already taken place. Yet, there was something distant about Mimi’s expression, an unhappiness that seemed all too familiar to Mary Ruth. “Steve with you then?”

Mimi nodded and gestured toward the other aisle. “He
’s getting flour from the other aisle.”

“Heard you moved into the
grossdaadihaus
at Steve’s,” Mary Ruth said, more of a question than a statement.

While she had been at her parents
’ farm recuperating, she heard that Mimi was having a hard time adjusting to not being with Steve at the Fisher farm. Mary Ruth always wondered why he had chosen to milk his cows on the ten-hour schedule, which made it difficult to plan since milking times changed on a daily basis. That schedule made it impossible for Steve to spend the time with his new bride in the evenings and weekends. And, for a woman who had not been raised on a farm, Mimi certainly had more than her share of adjusting to do without the extra stress of a rotating milking schedule.

“
Ja
, just yesterday,” Mimi responded, that cloud passing over her eyes once again. “Need to stock up.”

Mary Ruth nodded. She wondered what could possibly be bothering her sister-in-law. The expression on Mimi
’s face was blank, devoid of the positive energy that she had always demonstrated in the past. In its place were vacant eyes and drawn skin. Something was clearly wrong.

“And you are doing well, then?”

Again, Mary Ruth nodded. “
Gut
to be home, that’s for sure and certain. Barn raising in two weeks. You’ll let my
daed
and
mamm
know,
ja
?”

“And I
’ll be certain to bring some of my snitz pies.”

Menno walked around the corner and nodded at Mimi. He had run into Steve and spent a few minutes speaking with him, mostly about the upcoming barn raising. “Be seeing you in two weeks,” he said. “Just talked to Steve about helping out with the raising.”

“We will surely look forward to it,” she said and Mary Ruth could tell that she meant it.

It dawned on her that Mimi must be lonely, having spent the first weeks of marriage apart from her husband and now living alone on a farm with no other people to talk to. And, as Mary Ruth was more than aware, Steve was a hard worker and not one to sit still for very long. So Mary Ruth was more than certain that Mimi would be excited about the raising, a social day for all who participated. After all, barn raisings were always a fun day, even in winter. The community pulled together, often joined by some Mennonites and Englische neighbors, too. With the holidays around the corner, it was bound to be an extra special event, a time to celebrate the love of the Lord among neighbors, friends, and family.

By the time they returned to the farm, it was close to dinnertime. Mary Ruth was grateful for Menno’s help unloading the groceries and noticed that he lingered in the kitchen, watching her as she put things away before she began preparing his noon meal. She glanced over her shoulder, only partially surprised that he was still standing there with his eyes trained on her.

“Menno?” she asked. “Something wrong?”

“
Nee
,” he responded, crossing his arms over his chest.

“You should sit, then. Read the Budget and I
’ll get you a nice cup of coffee” she suggested.

He smiled, a soft smile, and he shook his head. “
Nee
, I’d much prefer to watch you work.”

Another heated flush covered her cheeks. “I think you
’d find the Budget more interesting,” she whispered.

“Certainly not,” he retorted but crossed the room to stand before her. He placed his hands on her waist and held her at a short arms
’ distance. “You belong here,” he said, his words catching her off guard. “I didn’t think it would be possible.
Nee
, if someone had told me last year that so much would have happened in just seven short months, I’d probably not have believed it.”

“Menno,” she whispered, apprehensive of looking into his blue eyes for fear of giving away what she was thinking and feeling.

He pressed a finger to her lips and silenced her. “Martha was a gut
fraa
, Mary Ruth. We married young and it was a partnership. I do not dishonor her memory or goodness in any way, however, when I tell you that this is much different...”