Free Mother For His Children, A by Jan Drexler Page B

front of Ruthy turned to greet her. Holding a baby in one arm, the young woman’s blue eyes twinkled from inside her bonnet, but she spoke in the soft tones appropriate for the day. “Good morning. It’s always nice to see a visitor. My name is Annie Beachey.”
    Ruthy took the woman’s hand and leaned forward to exchange the holy kiss, just as all the women in the line greeted each other. “It’s so good to meet you. I’m Ruthy Mummert.”
    Annie gave her another smile, and then turned to face the front again as the congregation moved into the house. As she removed her bonnet, Ruthy reached up to check her kapp, but then realized that she stood out in this crowd. Not only was she a stranger, a visitor as Annie had graciously said, but her kapp was also the heart-shaped Lancaster County style. These women all wore stiff, cone-shaped kapps.
    Never mind, she told herself. They all knew she was visiting today. Waneta could help her make a new kapp before the next church Sunday.
    Ruthy followed Waneta to a seat, ignoring the curious looks that followed them. She and the girls filled an entire bench on the women’s side, and she glanced over to see that Levi and the boys filled their own bench on the men’s side.
    Ruthy was relieved when one of the men sitting near the front started the singing at a signal from the bishop. She had let her mind occupy itself with thoughts about how these people would welcome her, but the familiar songs brought her back to the worship of God. She held the songbook for the twins, moving her finger along the lines of the Deitsch words so they could follow.
    A month ago she had been at home, surrounded by her friends and celebrating Old Christmas. Everything in this meeting was different, but still so familiar. The hymns were the same, the prayers were the same, and the ministers followed the same lectionary, preaching on John the Baptist today. By the time the second sermon began, she’d forgotten everything but their words. She may be far from where she grew up, but she was still home.
    * * *
    After dinner Levi sent Elias and Nathan out to the buggy shed to check on the horses. The sun had come out during the morning service, but it hadn’t tempered the cold at all. If anything, the air was even more bitter. There could be another storm coming. He took a cup of coffee with him and went to look out the front window.
    John Stoltzfus came to stand at the window with him, looking through the bare maple branches toward the northwest sky.
    â€œLooking for weather?”
    â€œJust a feeling I have.” Levi kept his eye on a shadow lying on the horizon. A cloud bank could mean snow.
    â€œI see your new housekeeper arrived safely.”
    â€œ Ja, she did. Her name is Ruth Mummert, from Bird-in-Hand in Lancaster County.”
    â€œI thought you had hired someone older.”
    Levi turned to John, the meaning behind his words becoming clear. “Believe me, I thought I did. There was a bit of a miscommunication, but she’s working out well. The children like her.”
    John stroked his beard. “Your sister, Eliza, stopped by to see me the other day.”
    He should have known Eliza wouldn’t let the matter rest. Sometimes a meddling sister was worse than having no sister at all.
    â€œShe’s concerned about you, having an unmarried young woman living in your house.”
    A cold stone turned in the pit of Levi’s stomach. He had never considered how Ruth’s presence in his home might appear until Eliza mentioned it. “She lives in the Dawdi Haus, separate from the rest of us.”
    â€œThis is thin ice, Levi. I know you would never want to show your children a bad example, and you would never take advantage of the situation, but things happen.”
    The vision of Ruth in the kitchen wearing nothing but her nightgown flashed through Levi’s mind. John was right. Things happen when you least expect