An Amish Schoolroom Read online

  Contents

  Cover

  Title Page

  A Class for Laurel Dedication

  Featured Characters

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Epilogue

  Acknowledgments

  Discussion Questions

  A Lesson on Love Dedication

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Epilogue

  Acknowledgments

  Discussion Questions

  Wendy’s Twenty Reasons Epigraph

  Dedication

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Acknowledgments

  Discussion Questions

  Glossary

  About the Authors

  Copyright

  Dedication

  With love and appreciation for Maggie. Your friendship is a blessing!

  Chapter 1

  Laurel Weaver felt nervous flutters in her stomach as the van bumped along the rock driveway. She rode past a sign announcing Troyers’ Furniture and toward a large, brick building with solar panels angled on the roof. Behind it sat two log cabins, a barn, and two other buildings. One looked like a shed and the other a daadihaus.

  She fingered the hem of her black apron as she took in her new home, and her mouth dried. Oh, how she hoped the Troyer family would approve of her and that the rest of the community would accept her.

  Please, God, let me represent my home well and make the school board grateful they hired me as their teacher.

  The driver, Rob, brought the van to a stop by the front porch. “Here we are,” he said. “I’ll get your suitcases for you.”

  “Thank you.” Laurel climbed out of the passenger seat and brushed her hands down her apron before making sure her prayer covering was positioned just right on her head.

  She took in the gorgeous purple mountain range topped with snow in the distance. Monte Vista, Colorado, was beautiful and so different from her home in Bird-in-Hand, Pennsylvania.

  The mid-August, late afternoon sun warmed her cheeks as she turned toward the house. Just then, the storm door opened, and a petite woman who looked to be in her early- to mid-fifties came down the steps toward her. Her light-brown hair peeked out from under her prayer covering, which was more cone-shaped than Laurel’s traditional Pennsylvania heart-shaped one. Also, she wore a blue dress and an apron that tied at her waist instead of one like Laurel’s full-body apron.

  “You must be Magdalena.” Laurel rushed over and shook her hand. “I’m Laurel Weaver. I’ve never been out West. The mountains are so schee.” Laurel gestured toward the horizon. “I’m so grateful to be here.”

  Magdalena smiled. “And we’re froh to have you here.” She looked past Laurel to Rob. “Hi, Rob. Thank you for picking up Laurel from the train station.”

  “You’re welcome.” Rob glanced at Laurel. “I’ll carry the bags if you lead the way.”

  “Lovely.” Magdalena turned to Laurel. “Would you like to see your haus?”

  “Ya. Please.” Laurel followed Magdalena behind the main house with Rob in tow. “How far is the schoolhouse from here?”

  “Just up the road. It’s a quick walk.”

  “Oh gut. So I’m guessing your husband makes furniture?” She pointed to the large building with the sign on it.

  “Ya, he works with our sohn and our son-in-law. They make bedroom suites, dining room tables, china cabinets, end tables, and the like.” Magdalena pointed toward the building. “That’s the showroom and the workshop.”

  “I’ve never seen solar panels on an Amish building before. How do the men use them?”

  “Oh, the panels power the air compressors, which, in turn, power their tools.”

  “How interesting!”

  Then Magdalena pointed to another large building. “That’s a supply shed.” She pointed toward the barn. “And the barn and stable.” She indicated the other log cabin and said, “Mei dochder and her family live there.”

  “I love your log cabins. I’ve never seen one before.”

  “Danki.” Magdalena nodded her head toward the small, one-level brick house. “And here is the daadihaus. My mother-in-law decided to move in with mei dochder, Bethlyn, to help her with the kinner after my father-in-law died, so it’s been empty for a few years. We cleaned it for you.”

  Laurel followed her up the steps, where two rocking chairs sat side by side on the porch. Cheerful flowers smiled over from a nearby garden. “It’s lovely.”

  Magdalena unlocked the front door and pushed it open.

  Rob set the two suitcases down right inside the door. “Is there anything else you need?”

  “No, thank you,” Magdalena said.

  Rob turned to Laurel. “I hope you enjoy your time here.”

  “I’m sure I will.”

  As Rob headed back toward his van, Laurel stepped into the small living room and glanced around at the little kitchen area with one counter, a few cabinets, a stove, and a refrigerator.

  Magdalena opened the refrigerator. “I bought you some groceries. There’s milk, eggs, bread, cereal, pasta, and some meat. There are spices in the cabinet there too.”

  “Danki. That’s so generous.”

  “Gern gschehne. You can use our driver to go to town for more groceries. There’s also a store within walking distance if you want to go on a nice day.” Magdalena moved toward a doorway. “In here’s a small utility room with cleaning supplies and a wringer washer.” She pointed to another door. “And there’s a line out back to hang your laundry.”

  Laurel took it all in. “Just wonderful,” she said.

  “The bedroom and bathroom are back here.” Magdalena led her through the small family room to the bedroom, which included one little closet, two dressers, and a double bed. “The bathroom is right here.”

  Laurel peeked into the small bathroom.

  “I’m making supper now. Why don’t you get settled and then come over around six?”

  “Danki. I look forward to meeting the rest of your family. You mentioned that you have a sohn and a dochder, right?” Laurel asked.

  “Ya.”

  “I have five siblings. I’m the second oldest.” Laurel thought of her family, and her heart clenched. “May I use your phone to let my parents know I arrived?”

  “Of course. The phone is in the workshop.” Magdalena steered Laurel back toward the large building with the signage on the front.

  They walked in the side door, and the smell of wood and stain filled Laurel’s senses as they moved past toolboxes, workbenches, piles of wood, and furniture. A hammer banged and an air compressor hummed, and she spotted two men working on furniture. One had his back to her, and she could only see his sandy, light-brown hair.

  The other man turned and gave her a smile and nod. He had dark-brown, wavy hair and a dark-brown beard. His eyes were dark blue, and he was fit with a trim waist. Laurel guessed he was shorter than her older brother, Ervin.

  Magdalena led her into an office, where a man sat at a desk, which was peppered with papers, books, and catalogs. The room also included a few chairs an
d filing cabinets.

  The man gazed up at her and stood. With his light-brown hair and matching beard sprinkled with gray, he looked to be in his mid-fifties. He had a wide smile, hazel eyes, a prominent nose, and a rotund middle. “You must be Laurel. I’m Moses. Welcome!”

  Laurel reached over and shook his hand. “It’s so nice to meet you.”

  “How was your trip?”

  “Gut. Danki. It was just long. I’d never been on a train before.”

  “We’re glad you’re here,” Moses said.

  Magdalena pointed to the phone. “Laurel wanted to use the phone to call her family.”

  “Oh, of course.” Moses came around the desk. “Take your time.”

  “Danki.”

  Moses and Magdalena walked out to the shop while Laurel sat down at the desk and dialed the number for her family’s farm. As the phone rang, she envisioned her mother and father rushing toward the large, red dairy barn to answer it. She closed her eyes and imagined their large, white farmhouse with the wraparound porch and the vast, green pasture. Her chest constricted once again.

  “Hello?” Her father’s voice sounded through the line.

  “Dat!” Laurel nearly yelled into the phone.

  “Laurel, I’ve been waiting for your call. How are you?”

  “I’m fine. I just got here.” She sank back into the desk chair.

  “How was the trip?”

  “Gut. Long.” She cupped her hand to her mouth to cover a yawn. “I’m just really tired. It was difficult trying to sleep sitting up in the seat.”

  “Have you met the family?”

  “Just the mamm and dat so far—Magdalena and Moses. Their dochder and her family live here too. The men make furniture, like bedroom suites and curio cabinets. And the daadihaus where I’ll be living is so lovely. How is everyone?” Laurel’s heart twisted as she thought of how much she already missed her family.

  “Everyone is fine. They told me to tell you that they send their love.”

  “Oh.” She frowned. “I was hoping to talk to Mamm and everyone.”

  “It’s after dinner here. Your mamm has Hadassah in the bath getting her ready for bed.

  “Right.” She rubbed her forehead. “I forgot the time difference.”

  “Maybe you can call earlier next time?”

  “Of course.” She sat up straight. “Well, tell everyone I love them.”

  “I will. Ich liebe dich.”

  “I love you too, Dat. Gut nacht.”

  “Gut nacht,” he said before the line went dead.

  Laurel hung up the phone and then pushed herself up from the chair. She walked out to the shop where Magdalena and Moses stood. The other two men had left.

  “Danki for letting me use the phone,” Laurel told Moses.

  “You’re welcome to use it any time. I’ll see you at supper,” Moses said.

  “Come in at six,” Magdalena reminded her before they walked out of the shop together.

  “I’ll go unpack and freshen up,” Laurel told Magdalena.

  Laurel made her way back to the daadihaus. She glanced around the little space as the silence crept in, and she rubbed her hands together. Having a place she could call her own was a new thrill, and she couldn’t wait to see more of this new community as well as her new schoolhouse.

  She unpacked her clothes, hanging her dresses and aprons in the closet and stashing her undergarments and stockings in the dresser. Then she washed her face and changed into a fresh dress and apron.

  Soon it was a few minutes to six, and she couldn’t wait any longer to meet the rest of the Troyer family. She ambled past the row of barns to the back of the main house, where she hurried up the back porch steps and then knocked on the door.

  She heard female voices in the kitchen, and then the back door opened, revealing a petite woman with light-brown hair and the same sky-blue eyes as Magdalena. She looked to be in her late twenties or early thirties.

  “Hi, I’m Laurel. You must be Magdalena’s dochder.”

  “I’m Bethlyn.” She pushed the door open. “It’s nice to meet you.”

  “Danki.” Laurel followed her into the kitchen, where the smell of meatloaf made her stomach gurgle, reminding her that she hadn’t eaten for more than six hours.

  Magdalena worked at the counter mixing together a salad while an elderly woman with gray hair, hazel eyes, a wide smile, and wire-rimmed glasses gathered up drinking glasses and carried them to the table.

  Laurel walked over to her and held out her hand. “Hello, I’m Laurel.”

  “We’ve been looking forward to your arrival,” the elderly woman said as she gave Laurel’s hand a gentle squeeze. “I’m Dorothea.”

  “This is my mother-in-law,” Magdalena explained as she set the bowl of salad onto the long oak table.

  “How nice that you live here,” Laurel said. “Both of my grandparents live nearly an hour away from my family, so I never got to see them much.” She turned to where Bethlyn had started setting the table. “May I help you?”

  “Ya, please.” Bethlyn handed her a stack of plates.

  Laurel took the dishes and set the table for nine. She looked over at Bethlyn, who was gathering utensils. “Magdalena mentioned that you have kinner. Do they go to school?”

  “They’ll be in first grade. They’re in the schtupp reading books.” Bethlyn stuck her head in the doorway. “Levi! Lea! Come meet Teacher Laurel.”

  “Zwillingbopplin!” Laurel grinned as they scampered into the kitchen. With their light-brown hair and blue eyes, the children resembled their mother.

  “I made you a present.” Lea grinned up at her, and with her missing front tooth, she had an adorable smile. She handed Laurel a piece of paper with a picture drawn in colorful crayons. “That’s you, me, and Levi at the school.” She pointed out the schoolhouse and the three figures standing by it.

  Laurel clucked her tongue as warmth filtered through her. “Oh my goodness, Lea. This is so schee. Danki!”

  Lea’s smile widened.

  “She likes to draw all the time,” Levi said.

  “And what do you like to do?” Laurel asked.

  Levi scrunched his nose and looked up at the ceiling. “I like to go fishing with mei onkel Glen.”

  “That sounds fun.”

  “Maybe you can go with us sometime,” Levi said.

  “I would love that.” Laurel turned toward the counter. “I’m going to put your drawing up here so it doesn’t get ruined, Lea.”

  “Wash up, kinner. Your daadi, dat, and onkel will be coming in very soon.” Bethlyn set out the utensils.

  Laurel found a pitcher of water in the refrigerator and filled the glasses while Bethlyn set out napkins and bowls for the salad, and Dorothea brought a bottle of homemade dressing to the table. Magdalena pulled a large pan of meatloaf and a dish of baked potatoes out of the oven while Bethlyn spooned green beans from a pot on the stove into the serving bowl.

  They had the meal served just as Moses and the man she’d seen earlier walked into the kitchen.

  Magdalena turned toward the men. “You met Moses earlier, and you saw my son-in-law, Roy.”

  Both men turned toward Laurel and nodded their hellos.

  “Where’s Glen?” Magdalena asked.

  “He was finishing a project,” Moses said as he dried his hands. “He’ll be in shortly.”

  The men finished cleaning themselves up and then moved toward the table. Moses sat at one end while Roy took a seat beside him.

  “Let’s go ahead and eat. Glen can join us later,” Moses announced.

  “Teacher Laurel! Sit by me.” Lea patted a seat next to her.

  “I’d love to.” Laurel took a spot between the twins while Magdalena sat at the other end of the table, and Bethlyn sat between her husband and the end seat.

  After a silent prayer, they began to pass around the meatloaf, baked potatoes, salad, and green beans. Soon their utensils were scraping the dishes as they ate.

  “Oh, Magdal
ena, this meatloaf is appeditlich,” Laurel told her.

  Magdalena nodded. “Danki.”

  “You have to give me the recipe. Mei mammi has a recipe with barbecue sauce. Have you ever had barbecued meatloaf?”

  Magdalena shook her head.

  “It’s so gut. I brought her cookbook with me. I’ll have to write down the recipe for you.”

  Magdalena gave a slight nod. “Danki.”

  The back door opened, and footsteps sounded from the mudroom before a young man with sandy light-brown hair hurried into the kitchen and crossed to the sink.

  “I’m sorry I’m late. I was just trying to finish up a dresser,” he said as he scrubbed his hands. He craned his neck over his shoulder, and his gaze landed on Laurel. “Hi. I’m Glen.”

  Laurel was so struck by his handsome face she could barely manage a reply. “Hi,” she finally spluttered.

  He was the most attractive man she’d ever seen with his perfectly proportioned nose, high cheek bones, and warm smile. His face was tan as if he had spent a lot of time out in the sun, and his green eyes reminded her of her father’s lush pasture in the spring.

  “This is our sohn,” Magdalena announced.

  Glen dried his hands and then walked over and took a seat beside his sister.

  “We had a rush order of a bedroom suite, and I had to get the dresser stained.” He bowed his head in silent prayer.

  Laurel ate a few more bites of meatloaf and tried not to stare at Glen.

  “How was your trip, Laurel?” Roy asked.

  “Gut.” Laurel forked more meatloaf. “It was exciting to see so many states, and I had never been on a train before. That was an adventure.” She divided a look between Roy and Bethlyn. “I appreciate that you and the other parents on the school board agreed to offer me the job. I promise I’ll work hard and do my best not to let you down.”

  Roy swallowed some green beans and then wiped his dark beard with a napkin. “We were grateful that you applied. Not many maed responded.”

  “I was thrilled at the opportunity to come out and see another community. It’s so different from back home in Pennsylvania. Have you ever been to Lancaster County?”

  They all shook their heads.

  “Oh, it’s mostly farmland. Mei dat is a dairy farmer. You don’t have any dairy farmers around here, do you?” she asked.