Free The Courtship Basket by Amy Clipston Page A

were standing there.” John placed the book beside him. “You just got home?”
    “ Ya , I did.” Mike frowned as a pang of guilt rang through him. “I didn’t realize how late it was until I finished my last project. I’m sorry I missed eating supper with you.”
    “It’s okay.” John smiled. “I know you have to work.”
    Mike was thankful for John’s understanding, but it did little to lessen the guilt he felt. “What are you reading?” He sat down on the corner of the bed.
    John held up the book. “I was just looking at it.”
    “Do you want me to read it to you?” Mike offered.
    John shook his head. “No, it’s okay. You look tired.”
    “I’m never too tired for you.” Mike touched John’s little arm as he recalled his frustrating conversation with Rachel earlier in the day. “How was school today?”
    John averted his eyes by studying the cover of the book. “School was gut .”
    “Is there anything you want to tell me?” Mike gently prodded.
    John met his eyes with a frown. “I don’t like school. I don’t want to listen and follow the rules. I don’t want to make freinden or read.” His voice was thick with emotion. “I just want to stay home and help you and Dat . Or maybe if I came to work with you, then you wouldn’t have to work so late.”
    So that’s it. John still wants to stay home and help us instead of going to school.
    Mike swallowed a sigh. Maybe what Rachel had said earlier was correct. Maybe John was acting out because he wasn’t getting enough attention at home. Maybe Mike needed to do a better job of parenting him. Maybe Mike wasn’t a good example for him. Should he ask Janie and Marie to stay over and serve as John’s mother? But Janie and Marie had their own lives. They both were active in their youth group, and they had their own chores to do at home as well.
    Confusion simmered inside Mike as he watched John fidget with the quilt on his bed. How could Mike be a good parent to John when he didn’t really know what he was doing? His parents had been good to Mike when he was John’s age, but the situation was different when he was little. Both of his parents were healthy. His mother was home caring for the house while his father was building lawn ornaments. It all changed when his mother died in an accident when Mike was ten. She was hit by a speeding car as she walked to a friend’s house one afternoon while Mike was in school. Mike had witnessed Dat ’s going through the motions of life without Mamm . Dat tried to hide his sadness, but Mike sometimes found him crying in the barn.
    Everything changed again five years later when Dat met Vera. After dating for nearly a year, they were married. Vera was kind and soft-spoken, and she treated Mike like her own son. Mike was certain their family was going to be complete, and he was thrilled when Vera was going to give him a sibling. But tragedy struck his family again when Vera died giving birth to John. Dat had lost his new fraa , and Mike had lost his new stepmother. And now, instead of only being a big brother to John, Mike also had to serve as a parent to John, and he was lost without his stepmother’s guidance.
    “Did you take your bath?” Mike asked.
    “ Ya .” John nodded with emphasis. “I also brushed my teeth.”
    “Are you sure you don’t want me to read to you tonight?”
    “No, not tonight. I’m too tired.” John yawned as he scooted under the covers. “Maybe you can read to me tomorrow night.” Mike took the book from beside John and placed it on his bookshelf.
    “That sounds like a gut idea.” Mike kissed John’s head. “Do you want to pray together?”
    “ Ya ,” John said before folding his hands and squeezing his eyes shut. “God, please bless our family and please make Dat feel better soon. Amen.” When he opened his eyes, he yawned again. “ Gut nacht , Mike.”
    “ Gut nacht , Johnny.”
    As Mike descended the stairs, he reflected on his conversation with Rachel again.