LITMIR.BIZ

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had finished her second cup of coffee when a two-wheeled cart piled high with her promised furniture arrived. The driver hopped down with ease. His passenger, a large yellow lab-mixed-breed dog remained seated but watched her master’s every move. A gangly youth sat on the tailgate.

      The driver tipped his head toward Eva. “Good morning. I’m Michael Shetler. You met my wife, Bethany, yesterday.”

      “I did. And your new baby.”

      Michael’s grin almost split his face. “Eli! He’s a mighty fine little fellow except for his insistence on getting fed at any hour of the day or night.” He gestured toward the back of the cart. “This is Bethany’s brother Ivan, and the dog is our Sadie. She’ll be at school most days because Bethany’s little sister Jenny will be one of your scholars. The two are seldom apart.”

      “It’s nice to meet you, Ivan. And you, Sadie.” The dog barked once.

      “That means hello,” Ivan said, hopping off the wagon bed. “Where do you want this stuff?”

      “I’ll show you.” She held open the door as they carried in a sideboard and had them place it in the sitting room against the wall across from the windows.

      The door opened and Willis came in carrying a trunk on his shoulder. “Where?”

      Her spirits rose at the sight of his smiling, soot-smudged face. She didn’t stop to consider why he had such an effect on her. “At the foot of the bed. Danki, Willis.”

      She heard barking outside and saw Maddie playing tag with Sadie on the lawn. Willis stopped beside Eva. She grinned at him over her shoulder. “It appears Maddie has a new friend. Bubble may be jealous.”

      Willis stepped up beside her. “Nope, Sadie is an old friend. The dog was the first to visit us when we arrived.”

      Michael walked past them. “She likes to keep an eye on her flock. She might look like a lab, but she has shepherd in her somewhere. She visits all the children in the area at least once a day. Where do you want the bookcase?”

      “A bookcase, how wonderful! Now I can get my books out of my suitcase. In the sitting room, please.” Eva rushed into her bedroom and pulled a suitcase out from beneath her bed. Willis saw her struggling with it and came to help.

      His eyes widened when he picked it up. “What’s in here? Rocks?”

      “A few of my books. The ones I didn’t want to be without.”

      “Books about what?” He set it on the floor in front of the bookcase.

      Eva unzipped the case, opened the lid and sank to the floor beside it. “About everything. My favorite books of poetry.” She clutched several thin volumes to her chest. “The devotionals I enjoy, some adventure stories, even a cookbook. You’re welcome to look through them if you want. You and the boys might enjoy reading some of them.”

      Willis held up one hand. “Another time.”

      “Where do you want the end table?” Ivan asked.

      “Beside my rocker. This is very goot furniture. I assume it stays with the house for the next teacher?”

      “I reckon so,” Michael said. “The horse and cart are yours to use for as long as you need. You will want to invest in a closed buggy before winter or make sure you have someone who can transport you to church and such when the weather gets bad. One of our newly arrived families, the Fishers, are wheelwrights and buggy makers. I’m sure they can fix you up with a small buggy at a reasonable price.”

      “You’re welcome to use my closed buggy if the weather turns bad before you can get your own,” Willis said.

      She was touched by his kindness and the generosity of all the people she had met in New Covenant. “I will take you up on that offer if I’m still here when winter arrives.”

      Willis frowned as he helped her to her feet. “I thought you were staying for the entire school year.”

      “I hope I will be but Samuel Yoder made certain I understand I am working on a month-to-month basis. You should see the amount of paperwork he left me.” They all walked out onto the porch.

      “Don’t let old sour face fool you,” Ivan said. “He’s happy to have an Amish teacher here. He has two grandsons who will be attending your school.”

      “I pray that sentiment continues. I appreciate the loan of the horse and cart.”

      Michael walked to the horse’s head and rubbed the white blaze on his brown nose. “I brought hay and grain for him. His name is Dodger. Where shall I put him?”

      “Stable him at my place for now,” Willis said.

      “The church plans to hold a frolic next month and put up a barn and corral for you,” Michael added.

      It was news to Eva but it made sense. Most of her students would walk to school but some would need to come by buggy or ride horseback. In the winter those in outlying areas would arrive in horse-drawn sleighs. The school would need a place to stable those horses.

      She had been involved in many of the working parties the Amish called frolics. When work needed to be done, the entire community would set aside a day to raise a barn, repair a home or harvest a crop for someone in the hospital. Everyone from the youngest to the oldest looked forward to the event and everyone helped.

      After the men left Eva put out her books and then returned to her paperwork and lesson plans. She had a lot to learn before school started.

      After two hours she decided against spending the day inside even with the drizzle. She took a cup of tea out on the porch and saw Maddie with Willis through the open door of his smithy. Without considering why, she grabbed a gray shawl and swung it over her shoulders then crossed the road to see what the pair was up to. The little girl was sitting on a stool, watching Willis pump the bellows to heat his forge.

      “Maddie, you look so glum. What’s the matter?” Eva asked.

      “I can’t tell you anything that Bubble says anymore.”

      “And,” Willis prompted.

      “I can’t make up things for Bubble to say.”

      “That severely limits your conversation, doesn’t it?” Eva winked at Willis. He shook his head as if wondering which side she was on.

      Maddie leaned closer to Eva. “Bubble isn’t happy.”

      Eva fought back a smile.

      Willis kept his focus on his forge but glanced up at her briefly. “Did you get settled in?”

      “For the most part. I should be working but I have decided to play hooky for the rest of the day. I can’t look at one more lesson plan. May I try working the bellows?”

      “By all means.” He stepped aside.

      She took over pumping a large wooden arm that worked the bellows. A few ashes floated onto her face and she brushed them away.

      He glanced her way. “You’ll have to pump faster. I’m losing the heat.”

      She picked up the pace. It wasn’t as easy or as much fun as it had looked. The heat from the forge soon had her sweating. She cast aside her shawl. Willis turned a block of iron in the coals with a pair of long tongs. “When do you know you have it hot enough?” she asked.

      “By the color. Iron glows red, then orange, yellow, and finally white when it’s heated hot enough. A bright yellow-orange color indicates the best forging heat.”

      “Isn’t it yellow-orange enough yet?” Her arms were getting tired.

      “Almost.”

      She kept pumping until her arms were burning. “That’s enough,” he said.

      Grateful to step aside, she let him take over. No wonder he had such muscular arms. “Now

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