“You’re right. The teacher is always right.”
With that, Willis turned and headed out the door.
“Willis, wait. I’m sorry,” Eva called after him.
“You’re forgiven. If the boy has trouble in school, let me know and I’ll speak to him about it.”
“Fair enough.” She arched one eyebrow. “I don’t have many friends in this new place. I’d hate to lose the first one I made here.”
“You haven’t lost me. I live just across the road.” He nodded in that direction.
A sliver of a smile curved her lips. “I should be able to find my way over if I try hard enough.”
“I suspect you can be a very determined woman.”
“I have occasionally heard my name associated with that adjective.”
“Occasionally?”
“Frequently might be closer to the truth.” Her grin widened.
After thirty-five years as a nurse, Patricia Davids hung up her stethoscope to become a full-time writer. She enjoys spending her free time visiting her grandchildren, doing some long-overdue yard work and traveling to research her story locations. She resides in Wichita, Kansas. Pat always enjoys hearing from her readers. You can visit her online at patriciadavids.com.
Leigh Bale is a Publishers Weekly bestselling author. She is a winner of the prestigious Golden Heart® Award and was a finalist for the Gayle Wilson Award of Excellence and the Booksellers’ Best Award. The daughter of a retired US forest ranger, she holds a BA in history. Married in 1981 to the love of her life, Leigh and her professor husband have two children and two grandkids. You can reach her at leighbale.com.
USA TODAY Bestselling Author
Patricia Davids
The Amish Teacher’s Dilemma
&
Leigh Bale
Healing Their Amish Hearts
Table of Contents
The Amish Teacher’s Dilemma by Patricia Davids
Healing Their Amish Hearts by Leigh Bale
Excerpt from A Secret Amish Crush by Marta Perry
The Amish Teacher’s Dilemma
Patricia Davids
This book is dedicated to my wonderful critique partners and friends, Theresa, Deb and Melissa. Your help is deeply appreciated, but your friendship is beyond price.
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.
—Colossians 3:16
Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter One
“We are in agreement. Eva Coblentz, the position is yours. Do you have any questions for us? Now would be the time to ask them.”
Eva gazed at the stern faces of the three Amish church elders sitting across the table from her. She should have a dozen questions, but her mind was oddly blank after hearing the news she had been praying for. The teaching job was hers. She wouldn’t have to return home in defeat.
She wanted to pinch herself to make sure she wasn’t dreaming. The men were all staring at her expectantly.
She gathered her scattered thoughts. “I’ve no questions at the moment, Bishop Schultz. I’m grateful for the job.”
“Very goot, then.” He nodded once.
She inclined her head toward the other men. “I would like to thank the school board for giving me the opportunity to teach at New Covenant’s first Amish school.”
She had the position. One that would support her for many years, God willing. Joy and relief made her giddy. Was she grinning like a fool? She wanted to jump for joy. She lowered her eyes and schooled her features to look modest and professional.
But a tiny grin crept out. She had the job! She could do this.
She glanced up. The bishop gave her a little smile then cleared his throat. “The house and furnishing will be yours to use as you wish.”
“Danki.” A job and a home. A huge weight lifted from her chest. Her brother Gene was going to be shocked. He had discouraged her wild plan to travel to Maine alone as a foolish whim. Only her younger brother Danny understood her need to go. Gene said she would be back begging for a place to live in a matter of weeks, but she wouldn’t.
The bishop gathered his papers together. “I think we can adjourn, brothers.”
The meeting was being held in her future classroom. The building itself was so new it still smelled of cut pine boards, varnish and drying paint. Dust motes drifted lazily in the beams of light streaming through the south-facing windows that lined the room. The wide plank floor didn’t show a single scuff mark, and the blackboard’s pristine condition begged her to scrawl her name across it with chalk. It was a wonderful place to begin her teaching career.
“You do understand that this is a trial assignment,” the man seated to the left of the bishop said. She struggled to recall his name. Was he Samuel Yoder or Leroy Lapp? The two had been introduced to her as ministers who shared the duties of overseeing the Amish congregation along with the bishop, but she had been so nervous their names didn’t stick with their faces. They were men in their fifties or sixties with long gray beards, salt-and-pepper hair and weathered faces.
“I do understand that my contract will be on a month-by-month basis until I complete a full school year.” She had the job, but could she keep it? She had never taught before. She wasn’t sure what would be expected of her. Her school days were far behind her. What if she wasn’t any good at teaching? What if the children didn’t like her?
The man beside the bishop sat back and crossed his arms over his chest. “I have taken the liberty of writing out a curriculum.” He pushed a thick folder across the table to her. “We expect modest behavior at all times. You must be an example to our kinder.”
“Of course.” So no jumping for joy. She had the feeling her actions would be watched closely by this man.
“Not everyone is suited to life in northern Maine. Our winters are harsh,” the same man said, giving her a stern look.
She
