After stacking the first thirty-five bales deep in the recesses of the hayloft, Noah and Joshua moved to the open loft door to wait for the next trailer load to come in from the field.
Joshua fanned his face with his straw hat and then mopped his sweaty brow with his handkerchief. “It’s going to be another hot one.”
The interior of the barn loft would be roasting by late afternoon, even with the doors open. Noah pulled off his ball cap and reached into his back pocket for his handkerchief, but pulled out Fannie’s kapp instead.
The silly goose. Did she really think he would agree to court her at a moment’s notice? Only she could come up with such a far-fetched scheme. He tucked her kapp back in his pocket and wiped his face with his sleeve, determined to stop thinking about her.
He leaned out of the loft to see how close the second wagon was to being full. “Looks like I’ll have time to finish putting a new horseshoe on Hank before they get here. We have some pony-size shoes, don’t we?”
Joshua nodded. “On the wall in the tack room. I had John Miller make a full set for Hank right after I brought him home.”
“Goot.”
“I can take care of him later,” Joshua offered.
“Checking the horses’ feet is my job. I only have Hank and Ginger left.”
“What does Ginger need?”
“I noticed she was limping out in the pasture. I haven’t had a chance to see why.”
“I can take care of her. I know you want to have your work done before you head to your ball game.”
“Danki, bruder.”
“You can return the favor some other time. I’m looking forward to your game next weekend. It should be a goot one. Walter Osborn can knock the hide off a baseball when he connects.”
Walter was an English neighbor and volunteer fire fighter. Part of his job was to gather the Amish volunteers in the area and deliver them to the fire station when the call went out. He was also a good friend of Noah’s.
“Walter is the best catcher in the league and our power hitter. If we can get into the state tournament, he’ll have a chance at being scouted by the pros. Those men don’t come to these backwater places. Walter deserves a chance to show what he’s got.”
Joshua settled his hat on his head. “Are you hoping to be scouted by a pro team?”
“Where’d you get that idea?” Noah avoided looking at his brother. He’d never told anyone about his dream.
“Mamm and Daed were talking about it the other day. Your coach has been telling everyone you have a gift. It’s easy to see how much you love the game, but you’ll have to stop playing soon. You will be twenty-two this fall. Your rumspringa can’t go on forever.”
Noah gave the answer he always gave. “I intend to enjoy a few more years of my running-around time before I take my vows. I’m in no rush.”
Giving up his English clothes, his cell phone and the other worldly things he could enjoy now would be easy. But could he give up the game? That would be tough. He loved playing ball. Out on the pitcher’s mound, with the pressure mounting, he felt alive.
He suspected that Fannie felt much the same way about her horses. She would hate giving up her riding but she would have to one day. Riding a horse astride was considered worldly and only tolerated before baptism. A rush of sympathy for her surprised him.
He pushed thoughts of Fannie and her problems to the back of his mind as he climbed down the ladder in the barn’s interior and headed to the tack room. He needed to concentrate on winning the game tonight. It would bring him one step closer to his goal.
To find out if he was good enough to play professional ball.
If he was good enough, he believed it would be a sign from God to go out into the world and use his gift. If he didn’t have the level of talent that his coach thought he did, that would be a sign, too. A sign that God wanted him to remain in his Amish community. Either choice would be hard but he had faith that God would show him the right path.
He was finishing Hank’s shoeing when he heard the sound of a buggy coming up the lane. His mother and his sister-in-law Rebecca pulled to a stop beside him in Rebecca’s buggy.
His mother graced him with a happy smile from the driver’s seat. “We have just heard the nicest news.”
“What would that be?” He opened the corral gate and turned Hank in with the other horses. The second hay wagon was on its way.
“The bishop’s wife told me two of her nieces have arrived to spend a month visiting them. I have invited them to supper this evening,” his mother said quickly.
“And I received a letter telling me my cousins from Indiana are coming to visit.” Rebecca smiled at the baby in her arms. “I’ll certainly be glad to have a pair of mother’s helpers with me for a few months. This little fellow and his brother wear me out.”
“So, both your cousins are girls?” he asked trying not to appear uneasy. Had Fannie been right?
His mother exchanged a coy glance with Rebecca. “They are, and all the young women are near your age. I’m sure you’ll enjoy getting to know them. Maybe one will catch your eye. I might even talk your father into hosting a few picnics and singings this summer. Won’t that be wunderbar?”
“Sounds like fun, but you know I’ll be gone a lot this summer, and I have a ball game this evening.”
His mother frowned. “It won’t hurt you to miss one of your silly games. I insist you join us for supper and meet the bishop’s nieces.”
“The team is depending on me. I can’t cancel now. It’s important to them.”
A stern expression settled over his mother’s face. “And this is more important. Noah Bowman, we need to have a talk.”
His heart sank when his mother stepped out of the buggy. She rarely took the lead in family matters. Normally his father took him aside for a talk after some indiscretion. Rebecca drove the buggy on to the house, leaving them alone.
His mother folded her arms over her chest. “Your father and I have spoken about this and prayed about it, and we have come to a decision. My sohn, you are our youngest. Your father and I have been lenient with you, letting you dress fancy and not plain, letting you travel with your team and keep your cell phone, but you are old enough to put away these childish things as all your brothers have done. It’s time you gave serious thought to finding a wife.”
He leaned close trying to cajole her with his smile. He didn’t want her to worry about a decision he couldn’t make yet, so he told her what he thought she wanted to hear. “You don’t have to worry about me, Mamm. I plan to join the church in due time. If that is Gott’s will.”
“You give lip service to this most solemn matter, but nothing in your actions gives me cause to believe your words.”
He took a step back. She was dead serious. If his parents forbade his ball playing, he would have to do as they asked or leave home. He wasn’t ready to make that choice.
The odds of getting picked up by a major-league team were a thousand to one against him, but he needed to know if he was good enough. Why had God given him this talent, if not to use it?
What could he say that would change his mother’s mind?
He shoved his hands into his hip pockets and rocked back on his heels. His fingers touched Fannie’s kapp. Would she still agree to a courtship or had he burned that bridge with his taunting?
Swallowing hard, he pulled the kapp from his pocket and wound the ribbons around his fingers. “I didn’t want to say anything, but I have plans