Life with Lily (6 page)

S
tormy had puppies last night,” Papa said one morning as he washed up at the sink before breakfast. “They're the cutest little things. I'll take you out to see them after we're done eating.”

Lily ate as fast as she could, then sat and waited until everyone was done.
Hurry, hurry, hurry, Joseph!
she wanted to say, but knew she shouldn't.

When Papa finally took them out to the barn, she couldn't believe what she saw: eight tiny puppies. They made funny mewling sounds as they crawled over each other to get close to Stormy.

Papa told Lily and Joseph that they couldn't play with the puppies until after their eyes were opened up, not for a few weeks. For now, too much handling might make the puppies sick. “Stormy will take good care of them,” he said. “She's a good mother.”

After Papa and Joseph went back into the house, Lily stayed in the barn, watching the puppies with Stormy. She could hardly wait until they were big enough to play with. Stormy lay quietly, proudly looking over her babies. As she nuzzled her tiny puppies, she didn't look scary to Lily. Not scary at all.

It was a beautiful afternoon. Lily lay on her top bunk bed and looked longingly out the window. The sun was shining and the leaves in the big oak tree danced in the light breeze. She could hear birds sing merry songs as they flitted from branch to branch. Under the tree, Stormy snoozed peacefully as her frisky puppies tumbled around her, chasing each others' tails. The puppies were bigger now. Lily and Joseph were allowed to play with them.

Lily could hear the sound of Papa's ax as he chopped firewood on the other side of the house. The steady
thump, thump, thump
from Papa's ax should have made her sleepy, like it had made Joseph. He was sound asleep in the bottom bunk. Even Mama was taking a little nap after she put Dannie and Davy to sleep in their cribs. The house was quiet. Too quiet.

Lily thought taking naps was a waste of time. From the window, she watched the puppies romp in the yard. She crept quietly out of bed and tiptoed outside to play with them.

Lily thought she might watch Papa chop piece after piece of wood from the huge pile. But then she thought again. Too risky. Papa might tell her to go back to bed. She gathered up her two favorite puppies and slipped into the barn before he could see her. She held the ends of her apron to make a basket and carried the puppies up the ladder into the hayloft.

Lily sat down to play in the back corner. Not much later,
she heard Mama call her name. A twinge of guilt prickled her. She squeezed behind a bale of hay and hoped the puppies wouldn't bark to give away her hiding place. Puppies thought everything was a game. She heard Papa call her name. She knew she should answer, but she didn't want to have to go back to bed. She held her breath as Papa and Mama kept calling her.

Her heart started to pound as she heard Papa climb the ladder into the loft. He had noticed the missing puppies and figured out her hiding place! When he saw her, he had a stern look on his face. She had never seen him look so cross.

“Lily!” he said. “Why didn't you answer when we called?”

“I didn't want to take a nap.”

Papa helped her down the ladder and took her to the porch. When Mama saw her, a look of relief flooded her face. “Where was she?”

“Hiding in the loft with a few puppies,” Papa said. “I think she should probably go to bed again so that she'll remember to answer next time we call her.”

Lily could see that she had made Papa and Mama upset. She wished she hadn't slipped outside when Mama had told her to take a nap. She wished she had answered Mama when she first heard her calling. She certainly should have answered Papa when he called. And now—to have to go back to bed! What a
terrible
punishment.

Mama helped Lily wash her hands, then sent her back to bed, just as Joseph woke up and went into the kitchen. She could hear Joseph and Mama laugh and talk. She could hear Mama feed Dannie and Davy. She wished she could be with them. Having to stay in her room by herself, all afternoon, was much worse than taking a nap.

Finally, suppertime came. Papa came into Lily's room to
ask if she was hungry. She was famished! Practically
starving
. The whole day brightened.

She bounced out of bed. It was wonderful to sit at the table and be with everyone again. Mama and Papa seemed to have forgotten how naughty she had been. They talked and laughed like they did at every meal. Lily decided, from now on, she would always answer when she heard Mama or Papa call. Too many interesting things had happened and she didn't want to miss out on them by having to spend another afternoon in bed. Too risky.

Autumn was coming. The floorboards in the morning felt cold to Lily's bare feet. The leaves on the maple trees were starting to turn bright red. Soon, they would turn orange, then yellow, and then they would fall from the trees.

Late one day, there was a familiar knock on the door of the farmhouse. Uncle Elmer had come to visit and, this time, he seemed like he was back to his normal self. He looked happy. He told Mama that Aunt Mary had come home from the hospital. The doctors said she would be fine. The cancer had been cured.

Uncle Elmer wanted to take baby Davy home. Lily was glad to hear that Aunt Mary was better, but she was going to miss baby Davy. He was starting to lift his head and wave his hands at colorful strings of beads that Lily dangled over him. She would miss giving him his bottle and seeing his smiles. He always made cooing and gurgling sounds when she was near him, as if he was trying to let her know he loved her best.

Lily helped Mama pack all of Davy's clothes and toys. Uncle Elmer wrapped him up in a blanket and carefully laid
him in a big box. He set the box on the floor of the buggy so Davy would be safe on the ride home.

After the buggy turned onto the road, Lily sat between Mama and Papa on the front porch swing. Joseph sat on Papa's lap and Mama held Dannie in her arms. Papa gently rocked the swing back and forth, back and forth. Everything was quiet except the katydids and crickets. In the woods a few night birds trilled their sweet songs.

Mama broke the silence. “I like hearing those birds sing. With all these trees around the house, it seems there are always birds singing somewhere. This summer was hard with Mary being sick and with having two babies to care for. There were days when I didn't feel like singing. Then all I had to do was to listen to my singing trees and I knew everything was going to be all right.”

Papa put his arm around her shoulder. “Rachel, you are a strong woman. Not many women could have taken care of two babies like you did. It will be nice just having to look after your own family.”

Mama looked at the trees in the yard. “I think we finally have a name for our little farm. Singing Tree Farm.” She laughed. “How about it, Lily? Would you like to be Lily of Singing Tree Farm?”

Lily tried out the sound of it a few times and decided she liked it. She snuggled close to Mama and listened to the wood thrush sing its evening song. She was happy that the birds had helped Mama this summer, and that they gave her a name for their farm: Singing Tree Farm.

L
ily had known this day was coming. School was what happened to little boys and little girls after they turned six. They were sent off to school. She had been worrying about this day ever since her birthday.

And now the day was here.

Lily sat on the front seat of the buggy beside Mama and Dannie. Joseph sat in the back. Lily was wearing a new green dress that felt stiff and uncomfortable. She held a shiny new lunch box in her lap. She had watched Mama pack it this morning: a nice egg sandwich made with thick slices of soft homemade bread. A cute, little pink bowl with a lid held several slices of Mama's canned peaches. And two oatmeal cookies.

Lily was pleased with her lunch box. She looked forward to eating the lunch Mama had packed. Mama talked as she drove Jim.

“School will be so exciting for you, Lily. You will learn to read and to speak English. The teacher will teach you new songs and then you can come home and teach them to us.”

Lily wished she had Mama's confidence. Her tummy felt like it was doing flip-flops.

As they drove up to the schoolhouse, Mama got out of the buggy to tie Jim to a tree while Lily held Dannie. Mama helped Joseph climb out of the buggy, then took Dannie out of Lily's arms so she could hop out. They all walked into the schoolhouse. All the desks were lined up in rows. The desks had black iron feet and curved seats, with curving backs that were part of the desks behind them. The tops of the desks had grooves to hold pencils and shelves underneath them for books. A large heating stove stood on the side of the room. Almost all of the seats were empty. Lily didn't know where she should sit. Another wave of worry rolled over her.

Mama helped Lily place her lunch box on a shelf as the teacher came to meet them. “My name is Teacher Ellen,” she said with a big smile. “And you must be Lily Lapp.”

Lily nodded shyly. She thought she had never seen anyone as beautiful as Teacher Ellen. She had auburn hair, bright sparkly blue eyes, creamy skin, and rosy cheeks. Her smile looked like it came from deep inside and made little dimples appear in her cheeks.

“We have a lot of fun things to do today,” Teacher Ellen said. “First, let's find your desk.” She led Lily to the front of the room and showed her a desk with her name attached to the top. “This will be your very own desk where you can keep all your books and pencils and where you will be sitting to do your work.”

Lily slid into the seat and opened the lid to her desk. There was a pile of books inside, as well as a box of new crayons,
a pair of scissors, and glue. Joseph's eyes grew wide. He wanted to start school today too, but he would have to wait. Lily hoped Teacher Ellen would let her start writing in those books soon. Mama had taught her the alphabet already.

Mama crouched down by Lily's desk. “It looks like you're all settled in. It's time for me to take the boys home now. I'll come pick you up after school.”

Lily stood at the door and watched as Mama drove away and left her there. She wasn't sure what she should do next. A group of children played a game on the playground, but she didn't know what game they were playing. Everything was so strange and new. She saw her cousins, Hannah and Levi, playing with a girl named Mandy Mast and some other children she knew from church, but no one seemed to notice her. She didn't know what to do with herself. Maybe, if she hurried down the road, she could catch up with Mama and go home. She could try school another day.

Teacher Ellen put a hand on Lily's shoulder. “Would you like to help me ring the bell to start school?”

Lily changed her mind about running off to catch Mama. Ringing the school bell would be fun! And wouldn't Joseph be envious when he heard what she had done? Teacher Ellen showed her how to pull the rope and make the bell ring. Lily pulled it hard, twice. The bell echoed loudly, so loudly that a family of crows startled and flew out of a nearby tree.

All the children came running to the schoolhouse. They stopped at the pump to get a drink of water before they went inside to sit at their desks. Lily was relieved when cousin Hannah sat across the aisle from her. Levi, a year older and in the second grade, sat behind her.

Teacher Ellen stood at her desk and looked over the classroom, smiling at each student. “I am so happy to be here with
all of you,” she said. “It won't take long to get to know each other. I'm sure we will have a very nice school year filled with learning new and exciting things. Before we get started, let's introduce ourselves.” She took a few steps forward. “I am Ellen Weaver. My home is in Wisconsin, but I am happy to come to New York to be your teacher.” She pointed to the back rows. “Now, let's start with the eighth graders. Each person can take a turn saying his or her name.”

As Lily listened to the big eighth graders introduce themselves, her worries returned. She wished she were at home with Mama and Joseph and baby Dannie. She wondered what Mama was doing right now. A big lump started to rise in her throat. Tears prickled her eyes. She bit her bottom lip to try not to cry.

Mandy Mast raised her hand and waved it wildly in the air. In a loud voice she announced, “Lily Lapp is going to cry!”

Lily's lips started to quiver and a tear leaked down her cheek. She wanted to disappear. Teacher Ellen hurried to Lily's desk.

“As soon as we're done with introductions, I have a very cute picture I would like you to color for me,” she said. “It's a little kitten on top of someone's birthday cake. You look like you would know how to color very nicely. Would you mind coloring it for me?”

Lily nodded. Teacher Ellen patted her shoulder to encourage her before she walked back to the front of the room. After each scholar was introduced, Teacher Ellen handed out assignments. As she passed Lily's desk, she handed her a paper. Lily got her crayons and started coloring. The kitten looked cute with its paws covered with frosting. She colored it yellow so it would look like her favorite kitten at home. She took out her pink crayon and started to color the frosting. It would be pink like Mama's birthday cake.

“EEEKKK!”

Lily's head snapped up. Teacher Ellen pointed to the trash can. The children jumped from their seats to see what was so frightening. Just then a little brown mouse darted across the floor and Teacher Ellen shrieked again.

Lily shivered and quickly drew her feet up off the floor. She did not like mice. She didn't want that mouse to run up her legs. Mice did that sort of thing. The boys started to chase the mouse, hoping to catch it. Some of the big girls joined in. Before long, the entire schoolroom had broken out in pandemonium.

Teacher Ellen hopped up on top of her desk in the front of the room. She noticed Lily cowering in her seat and motioned to her to join her. Lily jumped up on the teacher's desk and held on to Teacher Ellen as the terrified little mouse scurried around and around the schoolroom. Twenty children ran behind it, yelling and screaming.

Teacher Ellen shouted out for someone to open the door so the mouse could escape. The mouse made a few more laps around the classroom before it found its way to freedom and dashed outside to safety.

As the children settled down in the seats, Teacher Ellen hopped off the desk. “That was quite enough excitement for one day, don't you think so, Lily?” she said as she helped Lily down. “I'm glad I had someone to be with me while the mouse was chased outside.”

Lily smiled up at her. School was going to be more fun than she had thought. It was exciting! And she already loved Teacher Ellen.