Earlier this morning Jake and Harvey might have returned to the hospital to check on Amos and Ruth, who must be exhausted. No way around it, I was uncomfortable with Jake and Harvey spending time together. I wondered if visiting a sick man was considered work on this day of rest. No, Jesus had healed a lame man on the Sabbath.
I left the warmth of my bed, washed my face, and dressed. I had the oddest inclination to wear Englisch clothes so I’d blend in with the customers here at the nursery. Just for once, I didn’t want to stand out. But I didn’t own any and knew better than to attempt such an ill-conceived stunt.
I asked myself what I’d like to do more than anything. My inner response was to stroll around the nursery and pretend I worked with the plants. The business didn’t open until noon on Sunday. And certainly no Amish would be working today. I’d have the whole place to myself.
Dressed and my head covered with a scarf, I laced on my Nikes and scuttled out the door. I rounded the big house and almost walked right into Beatrice, whose arms sprang up in surprise.
“Are you trying to give me a heart attack?” she squawked.
“Me? How about you?”
“Looks as though both of us had the same idea.” She fingered the cross at her neck. “We’re playing hooky.” The dogs gamboled over to us. “Although I needed to let the dogs out.”
“I didn’t mean to sleep in. But since I did, I spent time in bed reading the Bible.” Ach, I sounded self-righteous.
“Well, I spent my time in prayer.”
We both fell into laughter like schoolgirls. Then we turned serious when I asked if she’d heard word about Amos.
“Over the phone. I felt as though I were swimming upstream trying to track him down in that hospital,” she said. “I finally reached the nurses’ station outside his room. I told the nurse I was his sister-in-law, although I think she caught my lie. Nevertheless, she said he was in stable condition and that Ruth was on a cot, deep in slumber. The nurse said, ‘Best not to wake her.’ ”
“Praise Gott he’s still alive.”
“Maybe we can visit later and give Ruth support.” She lowered her gaze. “In the meantime, we’re both skipping church.”
“This is a nonpreaching Sunday in this district,” I threw in to save face.
“I thought you were going to your parents’ church service today.”
“Ach, I slept in. And I forgot to ask Stephen’s permission to use the buggy again.”
“Want me to call Stephen for you?”
“No, he’s probably at church. And it’s too late to travel all that way by buggy.” Even though the nursery was devoid of customers and employees, I spoke in her ear. “Jake wants me to marry him before a justice of the peace and then get baptized later if we can.”
“And you said?”
“I’m sorely tempted.” I felt like a hose spewing its contents. I pressed my lips together lest I divulged too much, when in fact I didn’t know the answer.
Both she and I could make a mad dash and get to our destinations. But neither of us hurried. I needed someone to speak to. Not Mamm, not this time, and certainly not Olivia at this point.
We strolled along together toward the house’s grand front porch, with the dogs weaving between us. They clambered up the steps and snuffled around the swing.
Birds tittered and squirrels chattered on the branches of the maple tree, catching our attention.
“Look at the tiny new growth.” Beatrice tipped her head back. “The tree is still alive.”
“A sign from God?” I wondered aloud.
“According to Stephen, the arborist said we’ll have to wait and see.”
“Ach, always waiting.” I watched a squirrel balancing at the tip of a branch.
Beatrice let out a wistful sigh. “Sometimes when I’m caught in indecision, I write down the pros and cons.” She stroked Missy’s satiny forehead as the dog rubbed her muzzle against Beatrice’s skirt. “After I pray, of course.”
“My mind must have done that all night, as I barely slept.” I yawned. “For all I know, Jake has changed his mind by now. Most important should be Amos’s health and Ruth’s well-being.”
“My best guess is that both Ruth and Amos wish Jake to be baptized and to marry you.”
“But if Olivia moves in with them, everything could change. She’s far more attractive than I am, with a lively and outgoing personality. And she can cook too.” Jake could easily choose Olivia over me. With them living in the same house, how simple it would be.
“Eva, have you never turned your problems over to God and then let them go? As it’s written in Proverbs: ‘Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.’ ”
“Ach, I keep forgetting to do that.”
Beatrice and I strolled across the path leading to the greenhouses. The sun warmed the earth and leaves, still damp with dew. Rhododendrons and rosebushes bulged with the heady aroma of impending growth. I noticed hanging baskets, soon to hold a rainbow of colors. Birds tweeted up and down the scale, filling the air with harmonies.
The dogs snuffled the ground with intensity. I’d heard canines can detect smells hundreds of times better than we humans can. My hunch was they were hoping to catch the trace aroma of their owners. No matter how long I lived here, I might always be an outsider.
I wondered if Beatrice’s lost love would show up today. Unlikely on a Sunday morning. He would assume she was at church. But maybe this afternoon? She must have been thinking the same thing because her hair had been combed with care, and she wore a paisley shirt and a long flowing skirt.
“I know I’m being nosy, but do you think your friend might stop by?” I asked.
She shrugged
