Once again, a furtive smile made Mama’s lips flicker, as they had when she’d arrived on Thursday. “Maybe I know a little bit about that—and maybe I don’t,” she teased quickly. “But then, I suspect I’m not the only woman in this kitchen who’s not telling everything she knows.”
Leah’s eyes widened. Had Mama guessed there was a baby on the way? Adeline and Alice were gathering ingredients to make the fried pies they were taking for the common meal after church the next day, while Stevie had come over to make funny faces so Betsy would laugh. Maybe it was time to tell the kids about the upcoming visit from the stork before she and Jude shared their news with everyone at church . . . so they could savor the family’s secret before the neighbors heard it.
“I’ll tell my secret if you’ll tell yours, Mama,” Leah said boldly. As she’d anticipated, her words had caught the attention of Stevie and the twins, who would probably pester her and their mammi until the revelations came out.
Mama set the stack of dirty plates on the counter beside the sink, chuckling. “All right, that’s fair. You go first, Leah.”
Leah paused. She’d imagined having Jude by her side when she first mentioned the baby to his kids, yet she felt confident that Adeline and Alice would receive this news much more graciously now than they would have when they were calling her names and taunting her with chicken bones. “Well,” she began shyly, “it seems we’ll have another little Shetler joining us, sometime in September.”
The girls sucked in their breath and rushed over to her.
“A baby? Really, Leah?” Alice asked excitedly.
Adeline hugged Leah at the same time her twin did. “Oh, but this is gut news! And we’ve all had plenty of practice with Betsy!”
“We love babies!” Stevie exclaimed, clapping his hands. “But I want a brother, okay?”
Mama laughed knowingly as she, too, hugged Leah close. “I had my suspicions,” she admitted softly, “and I’m ecstatic, Leah. Maybe this is why Jude’s got a sparkle in his eyes, ain’t so?”
“Puh! You’re not getting out of telling your secret with that line, Mama!” Leah teased affectionately. “Seems to me you’re the one whose eyes are shining. Out with it!”
Mama’s face turned a little pink when she noticed the kids’ expectant expressions. “I’ve decided to take Jude up on his offer to come here to live—if it’s all right with you, Leah,” she added quickly.
Leah’s heart turned flip-flops as she grabbed Mama’s shoulders. “All right?” she blurted out. “After you’ve made us such wonderful rolls for breakfast—not to mention all the clothes you’ve sewn and—well, do you really think we’d turn you away?”
“Yay!” Stevie cried out as he made a beeline for Mama’s knees. “We love you, Mammi Lenore, and we’ll do anything you say if you’ll stay with us!”
Mama laughed as she stooped to hug him. “You’ve got a lot of witnesses who heard you say that, young man.”
Alice and Adeline slipped their arms around Mama, too, eyeing her closely. “So what brought this on?” Alice asked.
“Jah,” Adeline chimed in. “Did Dat tell you about the baby, so you decided to come help us out?”
“Or are you really coming to keep an eye on us?” Alice added with a laugh.
The twins gazed steadily at Mama—and so did Leah. Having her mother here to help with the cooking and household chores would be wonderful no matter why she’d decided to come, but now that Betsy had returned and a baby was on the way, Leah felt an enormous burden had been lifted from her shoulders.
Mama smiled as though all this close attention had caught her off guard. “Truth be told, Jude has asked me more than once to live here, but I wasn’t ready—until Bishop Vernon suggested that Mose and Hannah Hartzler could live in the house—”
“They lost their home in a fire, I heard,” Leah put in.
Mama nodded. “And it seems the bishop’s been looking for more pastureland for his Black Angus,” she continued. “Vernon has offered to buy the place, lock, stock, and barrel so I won’t be bothered with collecting rent or maintaining the place. After I thought about it, it seemed as though God had dropped a huge opportunity in my lap. So now that you’re all agreeable to having me here, I’ll take the bishop up on his generous offer.”
“Oh, Mama, this is wonderful-gut news,” Leah said. “I like your secret almost as much as I like mine!”
Mama’s smile took ten years from her face. “Truth be told, I was a little lonely on the farm by myself,” she admitted. “And it seemed nobody needed me anymore. If I live here, I’ll have folks to cook and sew for—”
“And kids to play with!” Stevie crowed.
“—and you folks won’t have to clean out all my stuff or deal with my furniture, either,” Mama added. “Except for my quilting supplies and a few other personal belongings, I can walk away from the place unencumbered because the Hartzlers lost everything in the fire. They don’t care that my curtains are faded or that your dat’s tools and a couple of old buggies are in the barn, because they can use them.”
The kitchen seemed to expand to twice its size to accommodate all the happiness Leah was feeling. Why hadn’t she thought to invite her mother to live here? Had she been so determined to prove herself to Jude and his kids that she’d overlooked a very practical source of assistance?
This isn’t about practicality, though, Leah realized. And it’s not about expecting Mama to do all the work I’m not so gut at, either. Left alone much longer, Mama might’ve withered away like the last grape left on the vine after harvest—although she’d
