An Amish Blessing Read online

  They removed their belongings from the trunk and walked to the house. Dat met them at the door.

  “What is going on here, sohn? Where have you and this Englisch girl been for the last four days?” His father’s voice remained calm but stern. His words were in their native Pennsylvania German language.

  “Surprise. Ruthie and I are married now.” He chuckled nervously.

  Mamm gasped and stood just beyond the screen door, not daring to step out onto the porch. “Mahlon!”

  “Married? You…” His father’s mouth hung open. He looked from Mahlon to Ruthie and shook his head. There was no way of masking his frown, the look of disappointment that Mahlon hated to see on his father’s face. “Why have you done this thing, Mahlon?”

  “I love Ruthie. I want to spend the rest of my life with her.” He reached for his wife’s hand and gently squeezed it. Whether it was to calm himself or reassure Ruthie, he didn’t know. His eyes pled with his mother’s, hoping she advocate for them.

  But his father spoke up. “Nee, you are supposed to marry a Plain maedel. What have you done? Now, we can never go back home. You have brought disgrace on our family.”

  “What did you expect me to do, Dat? Wait around forever? For Gott to drop a Plain girl out of the sky?”

  Mahlon grimaced, wishing to shield his new wife from their argument. He hoped that she’d someday learn their language, but now he was glad that she couldn’t understand their native tongue. His father’s words would no doubt sting her as they had him. He could never think of Ruthie—his beautiful wife—as a disgrace. “What’s done is done. You may not like it, but whether you and Mamm approve or not, she is my fraa now and your daughter-in-law.”

  “Then she must become Plain.”

  “Why? We’re not even part of a Plain community. I won’t ask her to change. I love her just the way she is.”

  “Mahlon, your father knows best,” his mother’s soft voice beckoned beyond the screen door.

  “Do not challenge me on this, Mahlon! I am the head of this home. You are not setting a gut example for your brother. He will no doubt follow in your footsteps.”

  “Leon has a mind of his own.” Mahlon stood his ground. “And Ruthie is a wonderful gut woman. How can she be a bad example?”

  “She’s an Englischer! She is of the world. I can see she has already bewitched you with her ways.” His father doffed his hat and furrowed his hair with his fingers. He stared at the ring on Mahlon’s finger, as though the sight of it disgusted him. “You will corrupt our ways, Mahlon! And what of any kinner you might have? Will you raise them Englisch?”

  Mahlon frowned. “I don’t know. I haven’t thought of that.”

  “It seems as though you haven’t thought at all, sohn!” His father fumed. “What will you do with her car?”

  “Her car? I don’t know. We haven’t discussed that yet.”

  “If you keep the car, you will not stay here.”

  “Dat, listen to me. There isn’t any other Amish anywhere near us. They won’t even know that we have a car. If any church leaders ever do show up on our doorstep, they will warn us then. We won’t be put in the Bann because of it. They will just say that we need to sell it. If that time comes, we can sell the car then. Besides, having a car will be convenient, ain’t so? We’ll no longer have to pay a driver.”

  Mahlon’s father grunted. “We’re not called to live convenient lives, Mahlon. You know that.”

  “Jah, I do. But that doesn’t mean that we have to make our lives unnecessarily difficult, does it?” Mahlon did his best to reason, although he wasn’t sure he was gaining much ground. “Ruthie is part of our family now. I was hoping you and Mamm would welcome her.”

  His father glanced to Ruthie and lifted a half smile, as though he just realized she’d been standing there the whole time. “Kumm in and have some supper. We can discuss this more later.”

  “Denki, Dat.” Mahlon led the way into the house, thankful that his father had conceded—for now, at least. “We’re going to put our stuff in my room first.” He gestured to Ruthie to follow him up the stairs.

  When they reached his bedroom, he closed the door and deposited their bags on the floor. He blew out a long breath.

  Ruthie surveyed his simple room.

  “It’s not much.” He hoped she wasn’t disappointed.

  “It’s fine.” She smiled. “Are you okay?”

  “Jah. My father isn’t happy, but I didn’t really expect him to be.” He pulled her close and kissed her. “I love you.”

  “I love you too.” Her lithe fingers moved gently through his hair—something he’d come to enjoy immensely. “I can’t wait to sleep in here with you tonight.”

  His brow shot up. “Really?” He nuzzled her neck.

  She nodded. “But right now, we should probably go back downstairs.”

  “You’re right.” He smiled. “But I look forward to tonight.”

  “Me too.”

  ~

  Not long after their return, after the confrontation with Mahlon’s parents, and after supper, they were finally able to relax on the porch swing. Ruth smiled down at their intertwined hands as her husband of four days kissed the top her head.

  A familiar vehicle pulled into the driveway.

  “Oh, no. It’s my dad.” Ruth took a deep breath and sat up, bracing herself for the conflict that was sure to come.

  Ruth’s father stormed out of his car and onto the porch. He took firm hold of her arm, hauling her in the direction of his vehicle. “What do you think you’re doing going off with Mahlon like that for days? I’m definitely filing—”

  “Let my wife go!” Mahlon demanded.

  Her father scoffed but stopped in his tracks. “Your wife?”

  Ruth held up her left hand. “We’re married, Dad. I’m Mahlon’s wife now and he is my husband.”

  “Preposterous! I cannot accept this!”

  “It’s true.”

  “What have you done, Ruthie? You’ve ruined your life!”

  “No, Dad. My life is wonderful.”

  Her father shook his head. “This is ridiculous. You’re getting an annulment right now.”

  “It’s too late for that, and I don’t want an annulment.” Ruth couldn’t help the exasperation that clipped her tone. “Dad, Mahlon and I are adults. We aren’t children anymore. We chose to get married.”

  He finally released her arm. “What do his parents have to say about this?”

  “They’re not pleased either,” Mahlon said, stepping forward, “but they have accepted it.”

  “Out of all the stupid things to do, Ruthie…and you…” He pointed at Mahlon. “You have absolutely no respect for me, or for Ruthie, or her mother. Or for your own parents, for that matter. You had no right to steal my daughter and do this thing!”

  “Dad, Mahlon and I love each other. It’s what we both wanted. If you would have let us date, we would have waited longer to get married, but you gave us no choice!” She brushed away a tear. “And don’t blame Mahlon for this. It was my idea.”

  “I can hardly believe that.”

  “Dad, we are married now. Nothing that you can say or do is going to change that.”

  “So, what now? Are you going to start wearing dresses and those ridiculous bonnets?” Did her father have any idea how offensive his words sounded?

  “It is a head covering, and it’s called a prayer kapp.”

  “Whatever.”

  “How can you accuse Mahlon of not showing respect, when you have insulted their entire Amish culture? Just because they do things differently than you do doesn’t mean they’re wrong and it certainly doesn’t make you any better than them. They’re just different.” She scowled. “And maybe I will start wearing dresses. But if I do, it will be my choice. Mahlon has not forced me to do anything, unlike you.”

  He turned to Mahlon. “Do you see what you’ve done to my daughter? She’s never spoken to me like this before.”

  “This is your doin
g, Dad! Mahlon has done nothing but love me.”

  “He has fooled you, Ruthie! He’s disregarded my authority and tricked you into marrying him.”

  “You are not listening to what I’m saying. Nobody tricked me into anything, Dad! We decided this together. This is not just what Mahlon wanted, it’s what I wanted too. I’m an adult and I have the right to make my own decisions. I shouldn’t be forced to go to college when I have no desire to. And I should have the freedom to marry whomever I choose. I chose Mahlon. I love him.”

  Her father shook his head. “I can see this is pointless. Don’t come crying to your mother and me when you’ve finally realized that you’ve made the mistake of a lifetime. Goodbye, Ruthie.”

  Her mouth hung open as she watched her father enter his vehicle then drive down the road. A tear slipped down her cheek unbidden.

  Mahlon came up behind her and placed his steady hands on her shoulders. He whispered in her ear. “Shh...it’s allrecht, lieb.”

  She turned in his arms and surrendered her emotions, drenching his shirt in the process. Would her relationship with her parents ever be the same?

  SEVENTEEN

  “I still can’t believe that we’re married.” Ruth reached over her pillow and caressed Mahlon’s hair. “Can you?”

  He took her face in his hands and brought his lips to hers. “Mm…jah, I can believe it.”

  “I love waking up in your arms, with you by my side. I’m so glad I get to do this every morning. I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of it.”

  “Me either.” His lips trailed her neckline and shoulder.

  “I’m so glad that our parents have finally accepted the fact. I know they still disagree and think we’ve made the worst decision of our lives, but at least now we won’t be badgered by my father or have to worry about him threatening to put you in jail.”

  “I don’t want to talk about our folks right now.” He mumbled.

  A knock at their bedroom door demanded their attention. Mahlon grunted his disapproval.

  “Breakfast, newlyweds,” Leon called. “I’ve already done your chores for a week, Mahlon, and I’m expecting you to pay me back.”

  “Yeah, yeah. Go on so I can finish kissing my fraa.” He winked at Ruth.

  “You two better come before Dat comes and drags you out of bed.”

  Ruth gasped and whispered, “Would he do that?”

  Mahlon shook his head. “Leon’s teasing. He’s just trying to scare you.”

  They heard Leon’s chuckle through the door, then his footfalls sounded on the staircase.

  She rubbed the scruff on his cheek. “When you gonna shave this thing?”

  “Shave?” Mahlon frowned. “Don’t you like it?”

  “It’s okay once in a while, I guess.” She shrugged. “Beards aren’t my favorite thing.”

  “Married Amish men don’t shave their beards, Schatzi.” She heard his concerned tone.

  “Ever?”

  He shook his head. “Sorry. I guess I should have warned you.” He grimaced.

  “If you think that would have stopped me from marrying you, you’re crazy.” She gazed into his gorgeous eyes. “I’ll learn to love your beard.”

  He leaned close and kissed her. “I was hoping you’d say that.”

  Mahlon abruptly rose from the bed. “Come, lieb. Time to start the day. Today, you learn how to be an Amish fraa.”

  “Should I be worried?”

  “Nee.”

  ~

  “Naomi, will you show me how to make a dress like yours?”

  “You want to dress Plain?” Her mother-in-law’s eyes widened.

  Ruth nodded. “I want to try to do all I can to please Mahlon. If the bishop comes, I don’t want him to get into trouble because of me.”

  “There are many things they could fault him for. Your clothes are only one thing.” Naomi smiled. “But Mahlon isn’t a baptized member yet, so he wouldn’t be put in the Bann.”

  “Do you mean that he won’t be shunned? I think I’ve read about that before or I saw a movie about it.”

  Naomi laughed. “I hardly doubt that a movie would portray our ways accurately.”

  “Well, in the movie, they were not able to eat with the family and they couldn’t take the shunned person’s money.”

  “Jah, those are some things included in the Bann. Perhaps I have misjudged.” She frowned. “And I fear I have misjudged you too, Ruthie. I will help you make a dress if that is what you would like.”

  “Thank you.”

  “And between you and me, I’d say that Mahlon will be pleased with you no matter what you do. They say that love is blind, and I think there is some truth to that. We tend to overlook the faults of our sweethearts, don’t we?”

  “I think remembering simple things, like doing to others as we’d like them to do to us, will go a long way in a relationship. Don’t you think?”

  “You are right. If we put others’ needs above our own, we can avoid much strife.”

  “Is that why you and Eli get along so well?”

  “Jah, and Der Herr’s blessings.” Naomi covered Ruth’s hand and briefly squeezed it. “I’m glad that Mahlon chose you. Amish or no, you are a good match for my son.”

  Tears sprang to Ruth’s eyes. “Do you really mean it?”

  Naomi nodded.

  “Thank you for saying that. It means a lot to me.”

  ~

  Ruth held up her dress and showed it to Mahlon. “Well, what do you think?” She could hardly contain her excitement.

  “What is it?”

  “A dress, silly. An Amish dress. I made it over the last few days.”

  His brow dipped. “For you?”

  She laughed. “Well, it’s certainly not for you.”

  “You…you will wear that?” The surprise in his expression surpassed what she’d imagined.

  She nodded. “I already tried it on. I love it.”

  “You do?”

  “Yes.” She frowned. “Aren’t you happy?”

  “Jah, I’m happy, but I didn’t expect you to make a dress. You don’t have to do this thing for me.”

  “I know. I want to.”

  “Will you try it on for me?”

  She grinned. “Okay, but you can’t laugh.”

  He frowned. “Why would I laugh?”

  “You’ve never seen me in an Amish dress. I’ll probably look funny.”

  “No, you could never look funny.”

  “Okay. Turn around so I can put it on.”

  He crossed his arms over his chest in defiance. “It’s a husband’s privilege to watch his wife undress.”

  “Mahlon, turn around. I don’t want you to see me until I have it on. I want it to be a surprise.”

  “But I already know.”

  She pinned him with a look of warning not to argue with her.

  He obeyed with a reluctant huff, but she knew he was smiling.

  She quickly changed out of the outfit she was wearing and threw the dress on over her head. It was hard to make sure everything looked okay without a full-size mirror available. She looked down and smoothed out the small wrinkles.

  “Okay, you may turn around now.”

  Mahlon did as told. His eyes roamed her figure, which was probably a little more difficult to make out with the dress on. He began laughing.

  Ruth gasped. “You said you wouldn’t laugh!”

  He shook his head. “I can’t help it. You’ve got it on backwards!”

  She looked down at it. “I do?” She smiled.

  “Jah, Schatzi. Let me help you.” He moved close and fingered her neckline. “See this?”

  “Yeah.”

  He moved his fingers to the back of her neck. “This V that you got back here, it goes in the front.”

  She laughed. “Oh, is that why it feels like I’m choking myself?”

  “Probably.” He smiled. “I wouldn’t know since I’ve never worn a dress.”

  “That’s not what I’ve heard. You
r mamm said you wore dresses when you were a baby.”

  He grinned. “Jah, I guess I did. But I don’t remember.”

  “I would have loved to see that. I wish your parents had taken pictures of you.”

  “And that is why I am glad we don’t have pictures.” He chuckled.

  She pulled her arms inside and turned the dress around. “There, how does that look?”

  “Much better.” He leaned forward, kissing her nose. “Now, you look like a true Amish fraa. Well, except for the hair.”

  “What’s wrong with my hair?”

  “Nothing, I like it down. It’s just not Amish like that.”

  “Do you want me to wear it up?”

  “I want you to wear it whichever way makes you happy.” Mahlon sat on the edge of the bed and removed his socks.

  “I love you, you know that?” She moved close and leaned in to kiss him as his arms wrapped around her waist. “I guess I’ll get out of this dress now. Aren’t you going to shower?”

  He shook his head. “Nee.”

  “No?” Her brow lowered. “But you need a shower. You’ve been working in that hot shop all day and you’re all sweaty.”

  He shrugged. “We only bathe once a week. Sometimes twice if something special is happening.”

  “Once or twice a week? But on our honeymoon—”

  “On our honeymoon, we didn’t have to worry about emptying out the cistern. Dat is worried that we could have a drought here like we had in Pennsylvania. If the cistern empties and we have no rain, we won’t have water to use for cooking or laundry.”

  “Well, you can’t come to bed like that, you’ll soil the sheets.” She tapped her foot, her frustration building by the second.

  He shrugged. “I don’t know what you want me to say, Ruthie. This is how it has to be.”

  I don’t want our first argument to be about taking a shower. She took a calming breath. This situation isn’t Mahlon’s fault, she reminded herself.

  Ruth sighed. “Just a minute.”

  She quickly went downstairs and fetched a large bowl and filled it with water. She took a bar of soap and a washcloth, and brought them upstairs to their bedroom.