The Decision (22 page)

After Jonah secured his horse, he stepped onto the porch, carrying a small box.

“Guder owed,” he said, smiling at Elaine as he took a seat beside her. “Did you get the note I left for you yesterday?”

She nodded but was barely able to tell him good evening because her throat felt so swollen. Just the sight of him caused her to feel so many regrets.

“I came from Jean’s place, and since I was too full to eat dessert, she sent over two slices of strawberry-rhubarb pie for us and some fresh strawberries for your grandma. Thought maybe we could enjoy them together after I mow your lawn.”

Elaine’s forehead wrinkled as she pointed to the yard full of fireflies. “I think it’s getting too dark for that, Jonah. Besides, Priscilla took care of mowing it when she and Leah were here earlier today. Leah got all the sticks in the yard cleaned up, too. With all that rain we had, a lot of twigs and leaves had come down from the trees.”

“That was nice of them. Guess I should have come by sooner, but I was kept busy all day in the shop, and then after promising Jean I’d come for supper, the day got away from me.”

“It’s not a problem.” Elaine looked at the box of goodies. “A piece of pie sounds good. I haven’t eaten many sweets since Grandma was diagnosed with diabetes.”

“Guess that must be kinda hard for both of you.”

She nodded. “It’s harder on Grandma than it is me. She’s always enjoyed eating most anything that’s sweet. Should I take the box inside and put the pie on some plates for us?”

“Jah, that’d be great. Think now I have room for dessert.”

Jonah remained on the porch while Elaine went to the kitchen, where she placed the berries for Grandma on the counter and made some tea. As she was putting the slices of pie on the plates, Grandma walked into the kitchen. “Ach, my, that looks so good!” She rubbed her hands together, smiling eagerly. “I’m more than ready for dessert.”

Elaine jumped at the sound of Grandma’s voice. “You startled me! I thought you had gone to bed.”

“Thought I was tired, but I couldn’t sleep.” Grandma stared hungrily at the pie. “I heard you moving around in the kitchen and decided to come see what you were up to.”

Elaine felt bad having to disappoint Grandma, but she needed to be reminded that she shouldn’t eat such things. “Jonah’s out on the porch, Grandma,” she said. “He brought the pie for him and me, and his sister sent fresh strawberries for you.” She motioned to the container.

“Oh, I see.” Grandma didn’t argue, but took the bowl of berries and ambled out of the kitchen with her head down. She was clearly disappointed.

“Are you all right, Grandma?” Elaine called after her.

“I’ll be fine. Just want to find a good book to read while I’m eating these berries.”

“Okay, then. I’m heading out to the porch to be with Jonah. If you need anything, just give a holler.” Elaine went out the back door, closing it behind her so Grandma wouldn’t hear her conversation with Jonah. She dreaded telling him what was on her mind, but it had to be said before she lost her nerve.

“Here you go.” Elaine handed Jonah the plate, then placed the tray with two cups of tea on the small table between their chairs.

They sat in silence for a while as they ate. “The pie was delicious,” Elaine said after she’d finished eating. “Your sister’s a good cook.”

“Jah, Jean’s always been an excellent baker. Our mamm taught her well.”

Elaine handed Jonah his cup of tea. It was all she could do not to burst into tears as she reflected on all the other times she and Jonah had sat on this porch together.
A year ago, who would have thought things would be so different now?

“Is something wrong?” he questioned. “You look umgerennt.”

“I am upset,” she admitted.

“What’s wrong? Are you still worried about your grandma’s health?”

“Jah, and things are even worse now.”

“In what way?”

“Yesterday, Grandma went shopping by herself, and she forgot to take her medicine along. Since she was gone longer than she’d planned, she decided to get some lunch while she was in town.”

Jonah sat quietly as Elaine told him how Grandma had blacked out and been taken to the hospital and kept overnight.

“I’m sorry to hear that,” he said. “Is she doing better now?”

“They managed to get her blood sugar stabilized with the proper dose of medicine, but since she’d hit her head, the doctor wanted her to be kept overnight for observation and more tests.” Elaine paused, struggling not to break down. “At the hospital last night, one of the doctors took me aside and gave me some very distressing news.”

“What was it?”

“Grandma has dementia.”

Jonah’s head jerked back. “What made them reach that conclusion?”

“They ran several tests, including an oral cognitive.” Elaine’s fingers curled around her cup of tea. “The results helped them determine that she has dementia.”

“But a loss of memory can be typical for a person her age,” Jonah said. “Some folks much younger than Edna become forgetful. Even I forget certain things—especially when I get busy or am under too much stress. That’s pretty normal, don’t you think?”

“It’s more than that, Jonah,” Elaine explained. “The results of Grandma’s tests showed that she does have dementia, and sorry to say, it’s only going to get worse in the years ahead.”

Jonah sat several seconds, head down, as though studying something on the porch floor. Slowly raising his head, he reached for Elaine’s hand and gave her fingers a gentle squeeze. “I know how upset you must be by this news, but I want you to know that I’ll be here to help you through it.”

Elaine moistened her lips with the tip of her tongue, barely able to make eye contact with Jonah. “I appreciate that, but Grandma’s my responsibility, and—”

“And you’re going to need all the support you can get.”

Elaine couldn’t argue with that, but it wasn’t going to come from Jonah. She had to make him understand. “I’m not free to marry you, Jonah.”

“Why not?”

“I just told you. I need to take care of Grandma.”

“I can help you with that.”

“You have enough to do with your buggy business.”

“My business is important, but I would still take time to help out where Edna’s concerned.”

Elaine shook her head forcefully. Apparently, Jonah did not understand. “If we were to get married, I’d want to be a full-time wife, and since I’ll be acting as grandma’s caregiver, for what could be several more years, I need to concentrate fully on that.”

Jonah slipped his fingers under Elaine’s chin and tilted her face so she was looking directly into his eyes. “I’m in love with you, Elaine.”

She swallowed hard and lowered her gaze, unable to look at him. “It’s not meant for us to be together, Jonah. You need to move on with your life because there is no future for us. Oh, and please don’t say anything about this to Grandma. I haven’t told her yet that she has dementia.” Before Jonah could offer a response, Elaine rushed into the house. Leaning her full weight on the back of the door, she let the tears flow. It was all she could do not to run back outside and tell Jonah she’d changed her mind and would marry him, despite all the hardships they would endure. But as Elaine grappled with her emotions, she heard Jonah’s horse and buggy pull away. Jonah was hurt, but the decision she’d made was final. For Jonah’s sake, as well as Grandma’s, it had to be.

T
wo weeks had passed since Elaine told Jonah she couldn’t marry him, but to Jonah the pain was as intense as the moment she’d given him her reasons. Thinking about it gave Jonah a headache and made it difficult to concentrate on his work.

There has to be something I can say or do to make Elaine change her mind
, he thought, reaching for a piece of upholstery that would cover the seat of the buggy he was working on.
Maybe after some time goes by, Elaine will reconsider. She’s most likely overwhelmed by all that happened with Edna
.

Jonah stopped for a minute, hearing a squirrel chattering in the elm tree outside his shop. “I wonder what’s got that critter so worked up,” he muttered, walking to the open door.

“Could be most anything, I guess,” Timothy called from across the room. “I can hear him carrying on clean over here.”

Jonah stood by the doorway and watched as the squirrel clung to the side of the tree, repeatedly shaking its tail. Then Jonah saw another movement, on a branch higher up. It was partially concealed by all the leaves, but he could see there was a hawk sitting quietly, watching the squirrel as if it was just waiting for the right opportunity to have a meal. The squirrel kept climbing, closer and closer to the hawk. Jonah thought if the squirrel moved any closer to the bird of prey, it would be a goner. At one point, the bushy-tailed critter got on the same branch as the hawk, and they sat watching each other. The whole time, the squirrel never relented and seemed to bark out warnings of the hawk’s trespassing. Soon after that, a bunch of crows flew in, giving the hawk a piece of their minds. The crows’ scolding, plus the squirrel’s chattering, went on for several minutes. Quick as a wink, the squirrel hopped to another branch. The hawk flew away, with the crows following close behind.

That’s one lucky squirrel
, Jonah thought, watching the tree limbs bob as the squirrel jumped from branch to branch.
Guess even God’s creatures have their own frustrations, same as me
.

Jonah hadn’t told anyone, not even Jean, that Elaine wouldn’t marry him. Since he was hopeful that he could get Elaine to change her mind, he’d decided not to say anything about it, unless he was put on the spot.

He needed to think about something else before he gave in to self-pity, so Jonah decided to check for mail. “I’ll be right back,” he called to Timothy, who was busy sanding some wood for another buggy. A week ago, Jonah had started on Adam Beachy’s new rig, and it was progressing nicely.

The boy gave a nod. “Okay. I’ll just keep workin’ on this while you’re gone.”

As Jonah headed down the driveway to the mailbox, he thought about how grateful he was that he’d hired Timothy as his apprentice. There was little doubt that the boy would keep working while he was gone. At the age of sixteen, Timothy was already a responsible young man.

When Jonah opened the mailbox, he was pleased to find a letter from his folks. Grabbing it, along with the rest of his mail, he stepped into the phone shanty and took a seat. This would be a good place to read Mom and Dad’s letter in quiet and without any interruptions. Jonah needed to relax a bit before he went back to work, so he settled into the fold-up chair and kept the door open to let in some fresh air.

Tearing open the letter, Jonah was pleased to learn that Mom and Dad were both doing well and were anxious to come for a visit soon. It seemed like forever since he’d last seen his folks, and it would sure be good to see them again. Jean would be pleased with this news, too, and he figured she’d probably gotten a letter from their folks as well.

As Jonah read on, he was surprised to learn that Luke and Meredith were expecting another baby. He was happy for them, of course, but it made him long all the more for a wife and children. As much as Jonah hated to admit it, maybe that was not meant to be.

That morning when Elaine went out to the phone shanty to check for messages, she discovered one from Priscilla, suggesting that she, Elaine, and Leah get together soon for a girl’s day out. Priscilla said she figured Elaine probably needed some time away to do something just for fun, and that her mother had agreed to stay with Elaine’s grandma while they were gone.

Elaine stared at the answering machine.
Should I take Priscilla up on that offer? It would be nice to spend some time with my two best friends. We haven’t done anything together for quite some time
.

With no further hesitation, Elaine picked up the phone and dialed Priscilla’s number. When she left the phone shanty a few minutes later, there was a new spring to her step. She looked forward to spending a few hours with her friends and felt confident that Grandma would be in good company with Priscilla’s mother, Iva.

“It’s good to see you,” Sara said when Jean Mast stopped by shortly before noon. “It’s been awhile since we’ve had a visit. Can you stay for lunch?”