Romance In Amish Country Series Boxed Set: 1-3 Naomi's Story; Miriam's Story; Ruth's Story

Romance In Amish Country: The Complete 3 Part Series Bundle: Naomi's Story, Miriam's Story, Ruth's StoryNaomi's Story
1Naomi Miller sat on a high bank behind the big barn overlooking the wide expanse of spring wheat nearly ripe for harvest. She watched the mid-morning breeze creating ripples in the field of wheat, and she glanced down at the basket full of eggs beside her. Naomi realized that most people she knew would admire the beauty of God’s creation in the wheat and in the perfectly formed eggs. Naomi saw more, though. She always had. When Naomi looked at the wheat and the eggs, she saw business potential. Naomi sighed – long and resigned – as she realized that she needed to return to the house soon. Her Aunt Ruth was busy preparing the midday dinner, a special one today, and Naomi knew that it was wrong to leave Ruth working alone for any longer. Thinking about the occasion for today’s dinner made the young woman’s stomach drop at the thought of the guests and the reason for their visit. Naomi wished with all her heart she could simply pretend to be ill and skip it altogether, or better yet, escape to her refuge from the pressures of being a young, unmarried woman.
2Dinner was going about as she’d expected, Naomi decided, as they passed the food around the table. While Joseph Hostetler’s expression looked hopeful as he dished out a most generous helping of the pot pie, Hannah looked daggers at Naomi, saying little. Though they had once been in school together, they had never socialized, then or since. Hannah and her sister, Sarah, did most of the housekeeping for their father, and although Naomi’s little shop catered to tourists, she also did a significant portion of her business with other Amish families, women who had discovered that her organically grown fruits and vegetables were both delicious and a good value. Naomi had realized about a year ago that neither of the Hostetler girls had set foot in her shop, and she’d also heard rumors that Hannah had made disparaging comments about the quality of the baked goods that Naomi proudly sold. Naomi had long ago decided that it would be neither productive nor friendly to publicly accuse Hannah of having said nasty things, and she’d chosen just to steer clear of the Hostetler girl. It was a little harder to be civil with Hannah in her dining room, though. Naomi simply smiled sweetly at Hannah until the girl could no longer hold her gaze without making a scene. Relishing her little victory, Naomi served herself some salad and passed the bowl to Joseph.
3The next morning, Naomi walked into the Amish market in Paradise with a spring in her step. She was relieved that since the dinner with the Hostetlers, her father had clearly backed off from his goal of finding his youngest daughter a husband. It was as though, having chosen so poorly the first time, he had decided that marriage was a thing best left in the hands of the women. As Naomi carefully set her eggs out for sale and arranged the applesauce cakes and rolls, she decided that God had given her a gift – the chance to choose for herself. Yes, she wanted to marry and start a family, but not a one of the young men who came to mind seemed a good fit. She supposed that she would have to be content to wait, certain God would find her the perfect match when the time came.
4The hum of voices remained low and steady as Naomi wandered through the Fishers’ home. Shem and Rachel had raised their seven sons in the home and still found room for Shem’s parents, but tonight, the big house felt cramped, full of people from all over the valley who had come to pay their respects to Jacob and offer their comfort to his family. Shem or one of his sons would great each new arrival at the door and ask them if they would like to see the body. Visitors who wished to see Jacob one last time were shown to the back bedroom where the coffin had been laid. One end of the lid was open, and the family member would pull back the white cloth so each visitor could look at Jacob’s face. Jacob looked peaceful to Naomi, and she prayed that had been a comfort to Miriam. Naomi realized that Jacob didn’t look much like himself, as his peaceful face lacked the easy smile that Jacob always wore in life.
5“I saw you come back in with young Seth Fisher last night,” Ruth said casually the next morning.
6After a hug and a promise to Miriam to return soon, Naomi allowed Seth to hand her up unto the gray buggy. They started down the drive at a leisurely pace, and Naomi hoped they would have enough time to talk on the way home, for even by road, their homes were less than a mile apart. Naomi wondered if they would encounter anyone they knew on the short drive, and she knew that if they did, then everyone in their congregation would know about it in short order. Noble talk of avoiding idle gossip meant nothing when there was news of a possible new relationship to share. Naomi reminded herself that the only reason she was in Seth’s buggy at all was to deflect his family’s attention away from Miriam. Naomi found it hard to remember that, though, when Seth kept looking at her the way he did.
7Supper was nearly ready when Ezra returned to the house.
Miriam's Story
8Miriam splashed water on her face and looked up into the small round mirror hanging over her dresser. Even though the bedroom window’s curtains filtered the morning sun, Miriam’s eyes were red and swollen, and it was obvious that she’d been crying. Thankful that,her mother-in-law, Rachel, had taken the girls to the frolic, where they would be practicing their stitching and quilting, Miriam had begged off because she had genuinely felt sick that morning. Since Shem, Miriam’s father-in-law, had been called away for an emergency, Miriam was alone in the house with her seven-year-old son, Ezra, sure to be too busy taking care of his beloved animals to notice that his mother was under the weather.
9A half hour later, Miriam descended the stairs to the kitchen. She had washed her face once more, rebraided her hair, and changed her blouse in an attempt to make herself look more presentable. She still had two hours before Rachel would return, and since Shem was helping one of Jacob’s brothers with the calving of a troublesome milk cow, he would not likely be home until long after the girls returned. With Seth visiting her own family’s farm to work with her father on the stable they would build before Naomi and Seth’s wedding this fall, Miriam only had to plan for a meal for two. Though she didn’t really feel like eating, she knew Ezra would be hungry. As she thought about it, she realized that she had more than just her own needs to think about – she had Jacob’s baby to consider as well. She’d sit down with Ezra and force herself to eat something. Miriam smiled to herself as she thought about nourishing Jacob’s unborn child – the only bright spot she’d known in weeks.
10“And then Aenti Ruth brought Dawdy Ezra and Uncle Seth and Uncle Daniel these great big, cold mugs of cider,” Ezra said, completing his narration of their busy afternoon at the Miller farm.
11Miriam woke early the next day, both surprised and pleased that she had actually slept quite soundly. She shook her head as she dressed and thought about her discussion with her mother-in-law the night before. Rachel had genuinely surprised her. Knowing her own uncertainties where Daniel was concerned, the Rachel’s show of support somehow made it easier to contemplate being ready at some point to move on and begin a relationship with a man other than her beloved Jacob. Miriam knew that she would miss and love Jacob for the rest of her days, but that didn’t mean that she had to live alone. God wanted His children to be fruitful and multiply, and Miriam knew that the Lord wouldn’t have sent her Daniel if He expected her to live alone forever..
12After dinner was cleaned up, many of the women brought out various projects and settled under the shade of the trees to quilt or sew. Miriam looked for Ruthie and Rebecca and was thankful to see them with a group of girls who were learning needlepoint from Rachel and another woman. Miriam took a turn holding Hannah Yoder’s newborn, and the slight weight of the tiny baby filed Miriam with hope for the life that grew inside her. Reluctantly returning the child to its mother, Miriam realized that she felt unusually tired and needed to rest for a bit. She slipped out by the side door, headed for her childhood haven. Coming around the main barn, she found herself on a high bank that overlooked open fields below. The winter wheat had already been harvested, and hay had been planted for the summer. The long, even rows showed the path taken by her father and his horse-drawn plow. The bright summer sunlight reflected off the pale green shoots of the new crop.
13“Oh, my,” Miriam murmured to Naomi as they approached the lunge yard. All six of the surviving Fisher brothers, along with their father, Abram, Isaac, and both her father and son, stood in a row along the fence watching Daniel work the new stallion on the lunge line. However properly and plainly they were all dressed, there was no disguising the fact that the men in both the Fisher and Miller families were a fine looking bunch. Healthy, hard working, and fit, the easy camaraderie of the crew was the picture of what every Plain woman yearned for: stability, family, and security.
14A week later, Miriam heard the horse before she saw the man, and when she glanced out the kitchen window, she recognized Daniel’s new blood bay gelding right away.
15September turned into October, the change of calendar bringing the end of the harvest and the fall Communion service. Sunday’s service had been to meet at the Fishers’, as the rotation of the service location between families came around to their home for the first time this year. It had been quite crowded, as usual, but there had been plenty of food at the dinner following the service, and everyone had gone home satisfied, both physically and spiritually.
16“You have a son!”
Ruth's Story
17“Guder mariye, Ruth Miller!”
18Ruth was slicing strawberries for the fruit salad when her brother came into the kitchen early for dinner. “Things are going well at the stable, I take it,” she said.
19The Miller-Fisher clan arrived bright and early at the Barber farm, ready to pick blueberries from the bumper crop. Ruth had been watching out the window for the arrival of the big open wagon, and as soon as it arrived, Ruth happily headed outside. The wagon carried Miriam along with her children, Ruthie and Ezra, as well as her mother-in-law, Rachel and some of Ruthie and Ezra’s cousins. The children laughed and waved to Ruth as she climbed into the back of the wagon.
20Ruth walked down to the stable where John and Joseph Barber, Seth, and a handful of boys watched Daniel attempt to approach the Barber’s mare. John and Joseph had led her between their two saddle horses, leaving at first light so they could reach the Miller farm long before traffic picked up on the highway. The mare seemed to still be traumatized by the journey, as she huddled against the far fence, looking terrified. Daniel stood in the middle of the grassy enclosure, speaking softly. Only her twitching ears indicated she was listening.
21The rotation for Sunday services had brought the community to John’s house, which was convenient, both because his house was big and because he stored the district’s bench wagon and benches in his big barn. John and his sons had needed only to carry the backless wooden benches inside to get ready to host the service. There were nearly a hundred people gathered, spread throughout the downstairs rooms, men and women separated, as usual. The five ministers in the community were scattered in the various meeting rooms, and there were also a number of vorsingers, or song leaders, who led the singing with talent and enthusiasm in each of the rooms. There was no instrumental accompaniment, of course, but with a strong vorsinger present, even the most timid voice could join in with confidence.
22As dusk descended, Ruth sat in her bedroom window, contemplating the peaceful scene below. The sun had set, and the moon was just rising, a huge, yellow ball resting on the horizon. She wrapped the quilt around herself tightly and rested her head against the rocking chair. If she closed her eyes, she would only see Tamara Raber’s hateful expression and be left to wonder once more what she had done to elicit so much hostility from a young woman she barely knew.
23Ruth was putting the last of the breakfast dishes away when she heard a carriage in the yard. She went to the door and stepped out just in time to see Seth help Mary King down from her buggy. Dear Lord, she prayed. What am I supposed to say to Thomas’ mother?
24Two cars came down the drive just as Ruth arrived at the Barber farm, early blueberry pickers sent home by the late morning sun, which promised a very hot afternoon. She waited patiently for the cars to pull out, returning the waves of the children in the back seat as they passed. She saw Noah and Nathan in their shirtsleeves working a team of four huge draft horses out in a field, turning the rich soil that had been left fallow this year. As she reached the yard, she noticed John’s largest wagon was missing from its usual spot under the overhang alongside the big barn.
25“Will you really not mind living in a small house?” John asked once they were on their way.
26The next several hours seemed to crawl by. The midwife, Nancy Gallagher, arrived in her small blue car and proceeded to give orders in her firm and gentle way that assured everyone that everything was going to be fine. Miriam followed shortly thereafter, and since she had been in the hands of Nancy for the births of her own children, Naomi was reassured by their confidence in the midwife.
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Also By Melanie Schmidt
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