Free Growing Up in Lancaster County by Wanda E. Brunstetter Page B

a bad idea. You’re lucky you weren’t hurt. You’d better not do that again.”
    Orlie stood and brushed the dirt from his trousers. “You’re not my mamm, Rachel. You have no right to be tellin’ me what to do.”
Aaa-choo!
He sneezed.
    “When you do foolish things, someone needs to tell you about it.” Rachel looked at Jacob. “Standing on the fence with one leg is dumm, isn’t it?”
    Jacob shrugged. “If Orlie wants to stand on the fence with one leg or two, that’s up to him.” He pointed at Rachel. “You, little bensel, should mind your own business!”
    Hot tears pushed against Rachel’s eyelids, and she gritted her teeth. Why couldn’t Jacob stick up for her—especially when he should know she was right?
    Rachel whirled around and walked away. Maybe swinging would make her feel better.
    “Where ya goin’?” Orlie called after her.
    Rachel kept walking.
    “She’s probably going to look for some flowers to smell.” Jacob snickered. “Now that she’s got new glasses, she can see what she’s smelling!” He tipped his head back and howled with laughter.
    The other boys joined right in. “Ha! Ha! Ha!”
    “Say, Rachel,” Brian hollered, “how’s it feel to have four eyes? Do those glasses make you see double?”
    Rachel covered her ears to block out their teasing and ran as fast as she could. She didn’t want to swing now, so she headed for the schoolhouse.
    “Four eyes!”
    “Snake eyes!”
    “Little bensel!”
    The boys scampered past Rachel and raced up the schoolhouse stairs, laughing all the way.
    Audra caught up to Rachel and slipped her arm around Rachel’s waist. “You should tell the teacher on them. It’s not right the way they tease.”
    Rachel sniffed and swiped at the tears running down her cheeks. “If I tell, they’ll call me a retschbeddi and tease me even more.”
    “Maybe I should tell the teacher then,” Audra said.
    Rachel shook her head. “Please don’t. I’ll think of some way to deal with this.”
    On the way to school the following morning, Rachel made a decision. She decided to take off her glasses before she got to school and put them back on before she got home.
    She stopped near the schoolhouse driveway, removed her glasses, and put them inside the small case she’d put in her backpack.
    Jacob frowned at Rachel. “What are you doing?”
    “What’s it look like?”
    “It looks like you’re not planning to wear your glasses today.”
    She nodded. “That’s right.”
    “Why?”
    “Because I don’t like being called ‘four eyes’, ‘snake eyes’, and ‘little bensel’.”
    “Okay, I won’t tease you anymore,” Jacob said.
    “That won’t keep Brian and Orlie from teasing.” She started walking again. “I’ve thought it through, and I’ve decided not to wear my glasses at school.”
    “But if you’re not wearing your glasses, then how will you see?”
    Rachel shrugged. “I’ll get by. I got by before, and I’ll do it again.”
    “Don’t be lecherich, Rachel. You have to wear your glasses.”
    “No, I don’t.”
    “Jah, you do. Mom and Pap would be very upset if they knew you weren’t wearing your glasses.”
    Rachel grabbed Jacob’s arm. “Promise you won’t say anything?”
    He shook his head. “I can’t promise that. It would be wrong to lie, and you know it.”
    “I’m not saying you should lie. Just don’t tell them I’m not wearing my glasses.”
    Jacob folded his arms and tapped his foot. “Hmm…I don’t know, Rachel.”
    “If you keep quiet, I’ll do one of your chores for a whole week.”
    His eyebrows shot up. “Really?”
    She nodded. “Just name a chore—any chore at all, and I’ll do it.”
    “Okay. You can feed and water Buddy.”
    Rachel wrinkled her nose. “You know what will happen if I go anywhere near that mangy dog of yours.”
    “Okay, forget I mentioned it. I’ll just tell Mom and Pap you put your glasses in your backpack and didn’t wear them at school today.”
    “If you do