There was nothing in her bedroom or the children’s rooms. She searched the kitchen and finally the large ornate bible cabinet in the living room. It contained only the family’s oversized three-hundred-year-old German bible and a few keepsakes. There was nowhere else to look unless she got a ladder and went up to the attic. She couldn’t imagine her uncle putting important papers where they would be so hard to access.
“Mamm, I’m hungry. Can I have a cookie?” Sophie asked.
“I don’t have any cookies but I think I can find a Popsicle for you and Toby.” Eli always kept a large box of assorted flavors in the freezer for the children.
The freezer compartment of the kitchen’s propane-powered refrigerator turned out to be completely filled with frozen meals in plastic containers, all neatly labeled. The members of the church had made sure that she and the children would be taken care of when they returned. Clara took a moment to give thanks for the wonderful caring people in her uncle’s congregation.
She found the box of Popsicles and gave each child their favorite flavor, then put out a container of spaghetti and meatballs to thaw for supper.
A knock at the door sent Toby rushing to open it. “Hi, Paul. You don’t have to knock. You can just come in. Want a Popsicle? Grape ones are the best.”
Paul stood on the porch with his straw hat in his hand. “Danki, Toby, but not today. I wanted to let your mother know I was leaving. I checked the generator and it’s got fuel.”
Clara moved to stand behind Toby. “Danki.”
She had forgotten to do that. Because the Amish did not allow electricity in their homes, Eli had gotten permission from his bishop to use a generator to supply the electricity for the blue lights Sophie needed. Eli had taken charge of keeping it running but she would have to do that from now on. She battled with her conscience for a moment but knew she couldn’t lie. “The generator belonged to Eli. You should add it to the farm equipment inventory.”
“I’ll try to remember but I’m a forgetful fellow. It might not make the list. I’ll be back tomorrow. Is there anything you and the children need before I go?”
She hated to ask him but Sophie’s health was more important than her false pride. “Would you start the generator so I can make sure the lights come on?”
“Of course.” He started to turn away.
“May I come with you?” Toby asked.
Paul looked over his shoulder. “Sure thing. I can always use an extra hand. Come on.”
The two of them had the generator started in a few minutes. Upstairs, Clara was relieved to see the lights come on when she flipped the switch. Eight blue fluorescent-light tubes were suspended above Sophie’s bed by a wooden canopy that could be raised and lowered with a chain. Mirrors on the headboard, footboard and one side of the bed reflected the light all around her. Sophie hated sleeping under the lights. Clara let her go to bed with her favorite blanket each night but once she was asleep, Clara had to take it away so the light touched as much of her skin as possible.
After she was sure the lights were all working, Clara went downstairs. Paul was standing outside the kitchen door again. “Does it function as it should?”
“The lights all came on. Thank you for making sure the generator would run.”
“You’re welcome.” He looked down at Toby. “I’ll see you tomorrow. I might need someone to help me list all the machinery on the place. That is, if your mother doesn’t mind.”
Toby turned pleading eyes in her direction. “You don’t mind if I help Paul, do you?”
She didn’t want Paul coming back but he would in spite of her wishes. Telling her son he couldn’t help would only hurt Toby.
“You can as long as you finish your own chores first,” she conceded.
“I will.” The happiness in her son’s eyes relieved some of her reservations. He had taken a liking to the auctioneer.
Paul patted the boy on the head and smiled at her. “See you tomorrow then.”
The man had a smile that could melt a woman’s heart. Unless she kept a close guard on it, and Clara always kept a close guard on hers. Her life was filled with complications she wasn’t sure she could manage. Adding one more was out of the question. She closed the front door as he walked away and then began sorting through the pile of mail waiting for her.
Paul did have a nice smile. She remembered the sound of his laughter when she produced the crowbar and how gentle he had been when he talked to Toby about losing his father.
And this absurd line of thinking only proved how tired she was when a man’s simple act of kindness had her thinking he was someone special. After a good night’s sleep, she was sure she wouldn’t find Paul Bowman half as attractive the next time she saw him.
Early the following morning while the children were still asleep, Clara walked down the road a quarter of a mile to the community phone shack shared by the Amish families who lived in her uncle’s area.
The small building that housed the phone and message machine was only six feet by six feet. It was painted a soft blue color and had large windows on two sides to let in the light. A solar panel on the roof provided electricity for the message machine. Inside was a narrow counter across one wall, where writing utensils and paper sat along with a copy of the local phone book.
A red light was blinking on the machine. She listened to the three messages. None of them were for her so she didn’t erase them. Sitting on the single chair in the room, she placed a call to her mother’s phone shack. She hoped her mother would be there to answer the phone. They had agreed on this time the last time they talked.
Her mother picked up on the second ring. Clara’s throat tightened. It was wonderful to hear her mother’s voice. “We made it safely back to Eli’s farm. It was a long bus ride.”
“How are the children?”
“They are doing fine. There was a letter from the Clinic for Special Children waiting for me when I got here. They did some lab work at her last visit. Sophie’s bilirubin levels are holding steady with ten hours of light but we might need to increase her to twelve hours soon.”
“Then the surgery can’t be put off much longer, can it? Have you decided what to do with my brother’s farm? It’s hard to believe he is gone but what a blessing he has left for us.”
Clara hated to share this news but saw no way to avoid it. “Ralph is here. He says Eli left the farm to him and he plans to sell it.”
“What? Eli wouldn’t do such a thing. He and I agreed you should have it.”
“We know that but I can’t find the papers Eli signed. Ralph claims to have them.”
“That boy broke his mother’s heart with his sneaking ways. I pray for him all the time. What are you going to do?”
“I thought I would speak to Dan Kauffman and see if he knows anything about this.”
“The Lord has placed a heavy burden on you, dear. I wish I was there to help.”
“I wish you were here, too. I miss you. The children miss you.”
“As I miss them. Give them my love.”
After hanging up the phone, Clara blinked back fresh tears. She had needed to hear her mother’s voice, but it made her miss her even more.
Her mother, a widow, had moved from her home in Pennsylvania to