Plain Peace Page 24

  Cora looked at Lucy, who’d brought a hand to her chest. “Where in the world did you get all this . . . stuff?”

  “Oh, here, there, and yonder,” Marianne said as she picked up a radio. It looked like it must be thirty years old. “This is one of the first things I purchased. I had to go to the Sears and Roebuck and pay them cash to order it from their catalog. Then they mailed it to me.”

  Lucy was wide-eyed as she scanned Marianne’s inventory. Cora recalled her own reaction the first time she saw this room. She’d probably looked just like that.

  Lucy picked up a box filled with jewelry. “Is all this stuff allowed?”

  Cora grunted. “Of course not! Why do you think she has it hidden down here in the basement? Only reason her husband didn’t know is because he has bad knees and can’t make it down here.” Cora thought about the ballerina jewelry box she’d bought with Marianne awhile back. It had given her great pleasure, and she’d come to believe there was nothing wrong with a little pleasure. Perhaps Marianne had gone a bit overboard. Cora suspected Marianne had invested quite a bit of money in this, um, hobby of hers.

  There was one chair in the room, a cushy upholstered one. Marianne sat down in it and gestured around her. “I’ve decided to get rid of these things.” She frowned. “Not all of it. But most of it. I’ve put the things out around the haus that I believe to be acceptable, and Isaac and I have compromised on some things—like mei little cuckoo clock.” She flashed a grin, then gave a businesslike nod. “But the rest of this stuff I really shouldn’t have, and maybe it can benefit someone else.” She pointed to Lucy. “So you first, mei dear. I want you to take anything you’d like.”

  “What are you saying?” Lucy’s eyes grew even rounder. “No, Marianne. I can’t do that.”

  “Sure you can.” Marianne stood up and reached for the box of jewelry. “Start with this. I bet most of these things would look very pretty on you.”

  Lucy shook her head. “No, I’m not taking these things. But I bet you can sell a lot of it.”

  “You mean like have a garage sale?” Marianne scowled. “That’s an awful lot of work, and Isaac would see everything I’ve bought over the years. I don’t think his heart could take that. He’s still adjusting to the new things in the house.”

  “Not necessarily a garage sale,” Lucy said. “You can sell things on eBay or something.”

  Cora looked at Marianne, and they both shrugged. “What’s this eBay?” Cora asked.

  “It’s an Internet site where you can put things up for sale, and the highest bidder wins. You send the item to the buyer, and they send you the money.” Lucy smiled. “Usually, they send you the money first, and—”

  “Good grief, Marianne. How long have you been collecting these things?” Cora had been sorting through some of the items on the shelves. She picked up a beautiful sculpted lighthouse. It was about twelve or fourteen inches high, varnished in maroon and white, with a glossy finish. “This is lovely.” She twisted her mouth from side to side. “But why?”

  Marianne took the lighthouse from her. “Because I’ve always wanted to go to the beach.” She put it back on the shelf. “I think I’ll keep that one.”

  “What about this?” Lucy lifted a colorful silk flower arrangement. “It’s really pretty.”

  “You take that, dear.” Marianne held her palms up. “I insist.”

  Lucy held on to it. “Why don’t I sell it for you on eBay and see how much I can get. Then you can decide if you want to sell some of these other things.”

  “Is it easy to do, the eBay?” Marianne’s eyes kept scanning the shelves full of her treasures. Cora knew this had to be difficult for her. She’d been finding refuge here for such a long time. But now that her secrets were out of the closet—so to speak—perhaps Marianne wouldn’t feel the same need to indulge herself behind her husband’s back. An honest relationship was so much better than one full of hidden things.

  That was true in Cora’s life too. Cora thought about the way John had held her close last night. They still hadn’t talked much about the boppli on the way, but they were making some progress. There was still much pain, but at least they weren’t hiding from each other anymore

  Lucy nodded. “It’s very easy to sell things on eBay. I’ve done that and bought some stuff too. I’ll put this flower arrangement online, and anything else you’d be comfortable selling.” She looked around, shaking her head. “I’ll bet this stuff is worth a lot.”

  Marianne tapped a finger to her chin. “I want any money I make to go to something important. I don’t need it.” She chuckled. “Isaac hasn’t missed it, and neither have I. We already have a nice nest egg put away for Anna.”

  “What about putting the money in the community health fund? Several of our members back in Ohio had cancer, and their chemotherapy really depleted our fund.” Cora picked up a box of Christmas ornaments. Why in the world had Marianne bought these? Their people didn’t even put up Christmas trees! She shook her head and put the box back on the shelf.

  Marianne nodded. “That’s a gut idea. We’ve also had quite a few folks with serious medical issues.” She looked over at Lucy. “How much money do you think I could get for all mei things?”

  “I have no idea. Really. There are so many boxes in here, and I don’t even know what’s in them all. You probably have an idea about how much money you’ve spent over the years. But things depreciate, and the marketplace changes.” Lucy shrugged. “I really don’t know.”

  “Would this help?” Marianne squatted down, reached her arm to the back of the bottom shelf, and pulled out a brown ledger book. She opened it up, flipped through a lot of pages, then pointed to the last one. “Seventeen thousand, six hundred twenty-two dollars, and forty-eight cents. That’s how much I’ve spent. Including shipping.”

  Cora’s jaw dropped. She glanced over at Lucy, whose mouth also hung open.

  “Seventeen thousand dollars?” Cora had seen the room before, so she knew about the radio and what was visible on the shelves, but Marianne apparently had a fortune tucked away in some of the boxes.

  Marianne ignored Lucy’s and Cora’s shocked responses. “Let’s sell a big item,” she said, “enough for Jacob to get a buggy of his own. He and Anna are getting married soon, and they’ll need a buggy.” She glanced around the room, her voice rising. “And when the Lapp farm burned a few months ago, we rebuilt it, but they lost a lot of equipment, and to mei knowledge, they haven’t replaced it. I’d like to help them do that.”

  Cora was only half listening. All she could think of was the sheer amount of money Marianne had spent over the years. And just about everything she’d bought was right here in this little basement room.

  “Let’s start moving all of this upstairs.” Marianne’s face was bright with excitement. “We’ll send as much home as we can with Lucy so she can sell it at eBay. I’ll store the rest in mei sewing room. Or whatever will fit. I’m sure we’ll have to leave some of this down here for now.” She tapped Lucy on the shoulder. “Now, the only way I’ll agree to do this is if you take you a commission. You know, like those realty people do when they sell a house.”

  “Absolutely not.” Lucy shook her head emphatically. “I want to do this for you.”

  Marianne frowned. “We’ll talk about it later.”

  For the rest of the afternoon, the women hauled up boxes and bags from the basement. Cora was careful not to carry anything heavy, at Lucy’s and Marianne’s insistence. she was happy to oblige. With each passing day, she was growing more excited about the child she was carrying.

  They put all the items in the middle of the living room floor so they could sort them into categories and decide what to sell. They broke for a chicken-salad sandwich during the lunch hour, then got back to work.

  When it was all sorted, they sat down on the floor, eyed their efforts, and started making lists. First, they wrote down how much they thought they could collect, then they began debating where the proceeds should go. This led to
a conversation about Anna and Jacob’s wedding and the plans that still needed to be finalized in the coming weeks. By this point they’d all lost track of time, so they were all surprised when Bishop Byler walked in the door. The poor man grabbed his chest, put a hand to his forehead, and eyed the piles of inventory spread throughout his living room.

  “Nee, Marianne. Nee! You can’t possibly expect to put all of this in the haus!”

  Cora and Lucy both jumped up from where they sat on the floor, and Lucy extended her hand to Marianne to help her up. Once on her feet, Marianne answered her husband.

  “Of course not, Isaac. These things are going to eBay.” Marianne stretched, stiff from sitting on the floor.

  Isaac slowly pulled his hand from his chest, but his expression was no less anxious. “Where is this eBay? On the coast? And where did all of this . . . this—where did it all come from?”

  “Let me say good-bye to mei friends, and I’ll explain everything.” Marianne turned to Cora and Lucy. “I’m too tired today to load any of this in Lucy’s car. Can we do it sometime next week?”

  “I can help on Monday,” Lucy offered. “That’s Labor Day, which means I’ll be off work.”

  Cora nodded, then Marianne walked Cora and Lucy to the door, and once they were at Lucy’s car, they both waved at Marianne, who closed the door.

  “I’d love to be a fly on the wall in that house right now.” Cora laughed as she got into the car.

  “Me too,” Lucy said, then giggled.

  23

  MARIANNE LOOKED UP AT HER HUSBAND, HANDS ON her hips. “I will not change one thing in this haus, Isaac. You and I agreed that much of what I had collected was unnecessary, and that’s what Lucy has been selling on the eBay. What’s left here are things we compromised on.” She waved her arm around the living room.

  “Marianne, we have a wedding here today. What kind of example are we setting for the district?” Isaac drew himself up to full height and put on his sternest, most forbidding demeanor. “I am the man of the household, and you must do what I say.”

  “Oh pooh! Don’t play that card with me, Isaac. Let our home be the new standard for the district. There isn’t anything in this haus that takes away from our faith, and there is nothing wrong with having a few nice things that lift the spirit or make life a little easier.” She backed away and waved her hand at him. “Now, shoo! There is much to be done, and all of our help should be arriving soon.”

  Isaac hung his head like a little puppy as he walked out the door, but Marianne wasn’t overly concerned. She had managed to hold her ground for nearly two months, and she wasn’t backing down now. The congregation would no doubt be surprised when they saw the house, but that was okay. How Isaac handled their surprise would be up to him.

  “How do I look?”

  Marianne turned when she heard Anna’s voice. She eyed her beautiful granddaughter dressed in a perfectly pressed new blue dress that Marianne had made for her. “You look beautiful. Jacob is a lucky man.”

  “I’m the lucky one.” Anna walked to Marianne and gave her a hug. “I’m so proud of you for showing Daadi everything in your broom closet. And it’s wonderful the way you are using the money from selling things to help the community.” She looked around the room. “And all of this looks very nice. It’s not too fancy, and it makes our home a little brighter.”

  “It won’t be your home for long.” As Marianne said the words, she felt a lump in her throat.

  “It will be for a little while, though—until we have enough money for our own place.”

  Marianne allowed herself a small smile, enjoying her secret. Her granddaughter and new grandson would be getting their own place sooner than they knew. An antique German jewelry box Marianne had purchased thirty years ago—at an Englisch garage sale, of all places—had turned out to be worth a lot of money, enough for a down payment on a house. And Marianne had already purchased Jacob a new buggy. All he had to do was pick it up in town.

  Her secret hobby had ended up being a savings account of sorts, and being able to do for others gave Marianne much more pleasure than all her years of collecting had. She’d finally convinced Lucy to take a percentage of their eBay sales, and the extra income was helping Lucy purchase some things she hadn’t been able to afford before, like a swing set for young Benjamin.

  “Mammi,” Anna called from the porch, “the wedding wagon is here.” Marianne looked out to see a wagon loaded with all the tables, chairs, dishes, and utensils they would need for today’s wedding. The kitchen table and counters were already piled high with food brought in by members of the community.

  There was plenty of everything, especially joy.

  It was going to be a grand day.

  Lucy carried Benjamin out to her front porch to wait for Noah’s car. Amish weddings started early, so Noah, Carley, and Jenna were supposed to pick her up at eight that morning. Lucy had argued and said she could take her own car, but ultimately Carley had convinced her to ride with them. “I have a huge surprise for Noah—and for you.”

  Getting to know Noah’s wife had turned out to be an unexpected benefit of Lucy’s new job. She and Carley had gone to lunch together several times, and they’d had long talks about all kinds of things. Carley had told Lucy about her own spiritual journey and about what it meant to be a daughter of the promise. Her words had echoed what Marianne had said, and they resonated deep within Lucy.

  Apparently it didn’t matter if you were Amish or not. Anyone could find plain peace. Lucy had found it through both her Amish and her non-Amish friends. She was on a new path, and God was lighting the way. She knew He had forgiven her for her past sins, and she was slowly forgiving herself.

  If she had any regrets at all, they concerned her mother. It would have meant the world to see Mom back to normal, the way she’d been before the stroke, but the doctors said that was unlikely. Chances are she would be angry and spiteful the rest of her life. But Lucy did her best to visit her daily, even though most days she had to push herself to go. She brought Benjamin to visit at least once a week. Her mother was happiest on those days.

  At the end of every visit, no matter how nasty Mom had been that day, Lucy made a point to say, “I love you, Mom.” Her mother never said it back to her. And that hurt, even though Lucy knew her mother couldn’t help it.

  Noah parked his car at the Bylers’, and they all got out. Carley ran into the house while the rest of them picked up boxes of food and slowly made their way inside. Benjamin quickly found a dozen or so children in the living room, and Lucy knew there were plenty of eyes watching him, so she headed for the kitchen, where Carley was talking to Marianne.

  “Oh no! Really?” Marianne didn’t sound happy.

  “What’s wrong?”

  The two women jumped at the sound of her voice. “Nothing,” Marianne said quickly, exchanging a glance with Carley.

  “Everything’s fine,” Carley told Lucy. “You’ll just have to wait a bit longer for the surprise, that’s all.”

  The two women were clearly in on a secret they didn’t want to share. And that was okay. A few months ago Lucy would never have been invited to an Amish wedding, much less been welcome at the home of a bishop. She felt honored just to be here. But she didn’t know what to think about this surprise. What kind of surprise could Carley have planned for both Lucy and Noah?

  Whatever it was, Carley and Marianne sure were excited about it.

  Anna waited at the bottom of the stairs while everyone assembled in the living room and beyond. Some Amish houses had panels that could be opened up to create one large room, but her grandparents’ house wasn’t like that, so they’d set up benches in the downstairs bedroom and even on the porch. Later those same benches would transform into tables for the wedding meal.

  She didn’t notice her future in-laws walk up until they were right beside her. Cora looked beautiful, practically shining with happiness. Mammi had said that pregnancy does that to a woman—it makes her radiant. Anna loved that id
ea, and she couldn’t wait to have a child of her own.

  John Hostetler was actually smiling, and as he leaned over and kissed Anna on the cheek, she silently thanked God for the healing powers that were surely working in that home. “We are so happy to have you joining our family,” he said. “May today be a blessed day. Today and always.”

  Anna thanked him, then watched them walk away together. Her people weren’t big on public affection, especially the older ones, so she found it particularly touching to see John latch onto Cora’s hand.

  Anna watched them walk up to Jacob in the crowd. He looked up, they locked eyes, and he broke out that smile that always made her stomach swirl. She couldn’t believe that this kind, responsible, gorgeous man would be her husband soon.

  And as she looked around the room, she thought about all the changes they’d all gone through the past few months. Mammi had finally stood up to her grandfather after years of hiding things from him. They’d almost lost Mammi when her diabetes got so bad. Her grandmother had become friends with an unlikely Englisch woman they’d all grown to care about. Jacob’s family was on the mend. And two weeks earlier Anna and Jacob had both been baptized, confirming their choice to live by the Ordnung in this peaceful community.

  Even Daadi was making some changes. Though still strict, he was listening more and even softening his rules—a little. In return, people in the community were beginning to recognize what a loving and faithful leader he could be. And Sarah Jane Miller had made a recent visit to their house, saying she’d heard a nasty rumor that Daadi had practically killed her stepmother, Lizzie. “All rubbish,” she’d said, adding that she would set those in the community straight.

  “It’s time.” Emma had come up behind her. She locked her arm in Anna’s. “Come on. Let’s go.”