The Lopsided Christmas Cake (3 page)

Elma glanced at the battery-operated clocks near the door. She’d been in the store over an hour already. Where was Thelma?

“She probably got distracted, like she often does,” Elma mumbled. “Guess I’d better find her.” She set her broom aside and hurried from the store, leaving the door open to air the place out. Glancing toward the chicken coop, she noticed the door was open. Surely, Thelma couldn’t still be gathering eggs.

Elma stepped into the coop. No sign of her sister there—only a couple of hens on their nests.
Thelma must be in the house. Doing what, I can’t imagine.

When Elma entered the house, she was surprised to see Thelma sitting in Grandma’s rocking chair, clicking away with her knitting needles.

“What are you doing?” Elma stepped in front of Thelma.

Thelma blinked rapidly, her cheeks turning pink. “I—I was tired and sat down with my knitting to relax a few minutes.”

Elma’s hands went straight to her hips. “I thought you were coming out to the store to help me. If we don’t get the place cleaned and organized, we’ll never be ready to open for business.”

“I know, and I’m sorry. I lost track of time.”

“I don’t see how this is going to work if you get distracted so easily and leave me to manage things by myself.”

“I’ll try to do better.” Thelma set her knitting aside. “Let’s head to the store.”

Elma opened the door and squealed when Tiger brushed her ankles as he darted into the house. “Oh great, now we have a katz to catch.”

“Let’s leave him here while we’re at the store,” Thelma suggested. “If there’s another maus, he might catch it and we won’t have to worry about setting any traps.”

Elma shook her head. “We can’t leave the cat in the house unattended. After what he did earlier, who knows what kind of mess he could make. Besides, he’s shedding. I don’t want cat hair in the house.”

“I could stay and catch the cat.”

“Oh, sure, and leave me to do all the work? No way! We’ll both try to capture the cat.”

Elma and Thelma went through the house, calling for Tiger, but he seemed to have disappeared.

“Now what?” Elma frowned.

Thelma shrugged. “Tiger’s bound to come out sometime. He can’t stay hidden forever. I suppose we could stay here and work in the store later.”

“The longer we put that off, the longer it’ll be till we can hang the O
PEN
sign in the front window.” Elma released a frustrated sigh. “As much as I dislike the idea, I think we’d better leave the cat in the house. Hopefully, he’s found a place to sleep and won’t wake up for a while.”

“If that’s what you want to do.” Thelma turned toward the door. “I promise, the first chance I get I’ll look for a brush and go over his coat real good. And don’t worry, I’ll do that outside.”

Elma followed her, making sure to close the door. The last thing they needed was another cat getting in—or a bunch of chickens.

As they neared the store, Elma halted. “Look, Thelma, there are two horse and buggies at the hitching rail.”

“Oh, good, we have company!” Thelma grinned. “Maybe some of our neighbors have come to get acquainted.”

Elma groaned. “More than likely we have customers who think the store is open. This is not what we needed today, Sister.”

W
hen Thelma entered the store, she was excited to see four women and five young children. She recognized Sadie Yoder from Grandma and Grandpa’s funeral. Perhaps she’d met the other women, too, but the day of the funeral had been such a blur. She’d been introduced to so many people she couldn’t remember them all.

“Hello, everyone.” Thelma smiled, and her voice grew louder. “It’s nice to see you.” She glanced at Elma and noticed that her smile appeared to be forced. Wasn’t she happy to see all these people?

“As soon as we saw the store’s open door, we figured you were open.” Sadie held a cardboard box. “When we heard you were coming, we decided to bring you some food. It’s our way of welcoming you to the area.”

“That’s right,” another woman, who introduced herself as Doris Miller, spoke up. “Mine is still in my buggy, and so are the boxes Clara Lehman and Mary Lambright brought.” She gestured to the other two friends. One of them had two small boys with her, and the other had two girls and a boy. The children all appeared to be under the age of six, which meant they hadn’t started school yet.

Looking at their cute little faces, Thelma couldn’t help feeling a bit envious. She loved children and longed to be a wife and mother, but as the years slipped by, she’d begun to lose hope. She’d had a few suitors, and so had Elma, but none of the men had seemed quite right for them. And they’d never been courted at the same time. Thelma still remembered as a little girl promising her sister that she would never get married unless Elma was getting married, too.

Glancing back at her sister, Thelma was relieved to see Elma’s relaxed expression. “
Danki.
That’s so kind of you,” Elma said. “If you’d like to bring your food items to the house, I’ll get them put away.”

“That’s fine,” Sadie replied. “We’ll see that everything is taken in.” She and Doris followed Elma outside, but the other two women and their children remained in the store. Thelma wondered if they wanted to visit or planned to do some shopping. She hoped that wasn’t the case, because Elma had made it clear this morning that they wouldn’t open until the cleaning and organizing was done.

Thelma turned to Clara and asked, “Do you live nearby?”

Clara shook her head. “Our home is several miles away. Having three little ones, I don’t make trips to the store as often as I’d like.” She glanced toward the stacked material. “I need some fabric. Is it all right if my kinner look at your children’s books while I choose the cloth?”

Thelma nodded. What else could she do? It wouldn’t be right to turn the woman down.

“Do you still carry vitamins here?” Mary asked.

“Umm… I’m not sure. We haven’t had a chance to take inventory yet, but you’re welcome to look around.”

“I’ll do that.” Mary motioned to her boys. “Is it okay if Philip and Richard look at the children’s books, too?”

“That’s fine with me,” Thelma replied. “In fact, I’ll take a book off the shelf and read them a story.”

As Mary and Clara started shopping, Thelma placed a braided throw rug on the floor. After the children took a seat, she found an appropriate book and sat beside them. “Solomon Lapp was a very smart boy,” she began reading in Pennsylvania Dutch, so the children would understand. “He always got the best grades in school. He fed the cows faster than his five brothers. He gathered eggs quicker than his three sisters.”

The children giggled when Thelma showed them a picture of Solomon riding his scooter. She loved to see them enjoying the story and wished she could sit with these sweet children the rest of the day.

“You can set the boxes on the table,” Elma said when she entered the kitchen with Sadie and Doris. “Again, it was so thoughtful of you to think of me and my sister this way.”

Sadie, the older woman, touched Elma’s arm. “We were all saddened when your grandparents passed away, but we’re glad you and your sister have taken over their place.” Her hazel eyes clouded, and she wiped a tear that had dribbled down her cheek.

“Jah,” Doris agreed. “We are so glad you’re here.” She pushed her metal-framed glasses back in place. “I didn’t know your grandparents as well as some of the others, because my husband and I are new to the area. But from what we’ve heard, they were both a blessing to this community.”

Elma’s throat tightened. She had to fight to control her emotions. The kind things these women said about Grandma and Grandpa made her miss them even more.

Refocusing her thoughts, she unloaded the boxes. They held everything from home-canned fruits and vegetables to casserole dishes, packages of meat, and several kinds of desserts.

Sadie passed Elma another item. “If there’s anything we can help you with, please don’t hesitate to ask.”

“Danki,” Elma said. “We’ll let you know if we need any help.”

She had put the last item in the refrigerator, when Tiger darted into the room—chasing a mouse of all things.
Oh no, not now!
Not wanting to embarrass herself, Elma fought the urge to scream and hop onto a chair.

As though this was an everyday occurrence, Doris chuckled. “Would you look at that?”

Sadie laughed, too, and Elma sighed with relief. Either these ladies were very kind or had dealt with mouse issues before.

By this time, Tiger had run the mouse into the utility room. Elma cringed when she heard a thud. A few seconds later, the cat appeared, carrying the rodent in his mouth. The women giggled as the cat sat before them, apparently waiting for their approval. Even Elma thought it was rather cute.

“Good work, kitty.” Sadie jerked the back door open. “Now take your prize outside.”

As if he understood, Tiger bounded out the door.

“Don’t worry,” Sadie assured Elma. “We get mice at our place from time to time, too. That’s why we keep a few katze around.”

Desperate for a change of subject, Elma said, “Maybe we should head back to the store and see what the others are doing.”

When they entered the store, Elma saw Thelma on the floor reading to the children. They seemed to be totally engrossed as she read about a young boy named Solomon. Even the children’s mothers, who stood nearby, listened. This was nothing new. Elma remembered how many times in their store back home, her sister had entertained some of the little ones while their mothers shopped. It was a nice gesture, but Elma hoped Thelma wouldn’t get into the habit of doing that here. They had only the two of them running the store, so they both needed to wait on people.

That evening, after the supper dishes were done, the twins built a fire in the fireplace and settled into the living room to relax. Thelma picked up her knitting to work on Mom’s gloves, when Elma suggested they try one of the desserts they’d been given today. She went to the kitchen and returned with a bunch of peanut butter cookies on a crystal platter Grandma had often used when the twins had come to visit. Thelma remembered it well because of a small chip on one corner.

“I have some water heating on the stove for tea.” Elma placed the platter on the coffee table. “Is the gas lamp giving you enough light?”

“Jah, it’s plenty.”

“It looks like you’re squinting. Would you like to borrow my reading glasses?”

Thelma shook her head. “No, I’m fine.”

The teakettle whistled, and Elma returned to the kitchen.

“Do you need any help?” Thelma called.

“I can manage.”

While her sister was getting the tea, Thelma put her knitting down and glanced around. With the exception of the linoleum in the kitchen and bathroom, the rooms in this house had hardwood floors.

Her gaze came to rest on the small table beside her chair, draped with one of Grandma’s handmade doilies. This old house had a story to tell—their grandparents’ story. Each piece of furniture and every room held a special memory. To Thelma it felt like a second home. She was anxious to see what new memories she and Elma would make here.

When Elma returned with two cups, she handed one to Thelma and took a seat on the sofa. “I’d like to discuss something with you.”

Thelma tilted her head. “What’s that?”

“Remember how at our folks’ store, you often entertained the kinner who came in with their parents?”

“Like I did today. Those children were so cute. I think they really enjoyed the story.”

“I’m sure they did, but there are only two of us running the store.” Elma leaned slightly forward. “I think it would be best if we both stick to waiting on customers and let the parents deal with their children.”

Thelma’s shoulders slumped. “I’m sorry. I’ll try to remember that.” Her sister was right, but oh, how she would miss spending time with the children. Taking over Grandma and Grandpa’s store meant more responsibilities for her and Elma. Things would be different from now on. Back home in their parents’ store, Thelma had always mixed a bit of fun with work. She hoped, even though it was only the two of them now, that the fun wouldn’t be completely lost.