“Not me,” Bonnie said through tight lips. “It makes me so mad that the men, all the men, think they can rule over all us women. One of these days we’ll have the right to speak for ourselves and do as we please as long as it is on private property and we’re hurting no one. We had no idea a man would be cutting across your property, Charity. And they sneaked up on us.”
“We were showing our limbs and knew better than to lift our skirts,” Christine timidly stated. They ignored her.
“Do either of you feel like eating now?” Charity asked.
They shook their kobbs (heads), picked up the basket of food and started trudging back to Charity’s house.
Charity felt as if she had a stone in her stomach when she saw Adam waiting for them, his fists on his hips and glaring angrily. She resented his attitude but dare not challenge him.
“Charity, get in the house. I think it’s time you girls went home,” Adam glared at them. The four girls silently hugged Charity and whispered encouragement, then walked quickly off. Charity had all she could take.
“Adam. We did nothing wrong. It was just us five girls and the two men cut across our property. It was none of their business what we were doing. We didn’t even get to eat our picnic lunch.”
“It was embarrassing to me for the men to come tell me what my wife, my pregnant wife, was doing showing her legs. I need to finish hoeing the weeds and then I’ll be in. For nachtesse,” he stated firmly.
Charity stomped into the house determined to have a frank talk with her husband. She sure could use a hug now.
Adam came wordlessly into the house just at dusk. He washed his hands, sat at the table and they bowed their heads for silent prayer (Matthew 6:6 When you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray. Do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Your Father knows what you need before you ask.)
They think this means to pray silently and not try to impress others.
Adam stopped and said nothing, but he looked at Charity with a questioning expression.
“This is our supper. The men kept us from eating our lunch and I didn’t want the food to go to waste.” Adam nodded and began to eat the ham sandwiches placing lettuce, mustard and tomato on it. Deviled eggs, fresh canned pickles, potato cakes and apple pie made up the rest of the meal.
After they had eaten they again bowed in silent prayer. (Deuteronomy 8:10 When you have eaten and are satisfied, praise the Lord your God.)
Adam scooted his chair back, placed his right ankle on his left knee and stared at Charity. She couldn’t take it.
“Adam, I don’t know why you’re so mad. We did nothing wrong. In the first place, I was on my own property. We only had the dress lifted to the knees and the lower leg was in the water. They need to keep their naas (nose) out of my business.”
Adam’s eyebrows went up because Amish women did not show such emotion. He put it down to her pregnancy.
Charity continued, “The way those men acted, you would have thought dunner (thunder) and wedderleech (lightning) was being brought because of us. I’ll admit, my hochmut (pride) was hurt, and -- yes, I know I shouldn’t feel that way. We were not being nexnutzich (naughty); just cooling off and having a good time together. We were not acting in geeheemnis (secret); we were in the open on our own property.” She stopped to catch her breath and to take a deep breath to keep from crying.
She started to talk again but Adam held his hand up, palm toward Charity to show he didn’t want her to talk.
“I told you it was embarrassing to be told that my wife, my pregnant wife, was showing her limbs in public. After hearing you speak I can see that what you did was not bad enough to create all of that commotion. I’ll take care of it. Just let me know what you plan to do in the future.”
Charity was trying very hard not to cry but could not stop a few tears rolling down her cheeks.
“Charity, while we’re talking I’d like to ask you some-thing. Do you regret marrying me? Is our life disappointing or boring?”
Charity was so disturbed that she jumped up and overturned her chair. “I’ve been meaning to ask you those same questions.”
“Why would you think to ask me about that?”
“You have never hugged me, or kissed me, or said you love me. Are you regretting being married to me?” She was sobbing by now.
Adam jumped up and hurried around the table. He hugged her and she laid her kobb (head) on his shoulder. He finally placed a finger under her chin and gently raised her to face him. He smiled and kissed her. “I do love you. Don’t you known I’ve worked hard to provide for you? I guess I’ve never seen my parents be affectionate and I just never thought to show you. I feel so blessed to have you. I’m so proud of you and want our marriage to be happy and successful.”
Needless to say, bedtime, that night, was all Charity could want it to be.
Adam was trying very hard to be a good, thoughtful husband.
Their gut nacht (good night) was said very lovingly to each other.
Chapter Three
The next morning Charity happily got up at five thirty and went to the kitchen to get breakfast. Adam was out in the barn feeding and caring for the animals. He came in and ate a big breakfast because they had always been taught that breakfast was the most important meal of the day; it was breaking the fast. He had oatmeal, three over easy eggs, fried potatoes, four biscuits with butter and blackberry jam and two glasses of milk.
He sauntered around the table to Charity’s back where she was preparing to wash dishes. He put his arms around her and hugged her close. She lay her head back against him and then slowly turned to face him. He smiled and kissed her soundly, then grabbed his hat from a peg on the kitchen wall and almost ran out of the house to start work for the day.
Charity smiled to herself and began to dance around holding her arms out like a small child might. She suddenly realized that she was doing something worldly and stopped, asking God to forgive her. She wanted to do something special for Adam and began to gather materials for making two banana pies with thick meringue just as he loved them. She was singing to herself and busily rolling out dough so that she didn’t hear someone come in the kitchen door.
A deep voice said, “Guder mariye, dochder (Good morning, daughter).”
She whirled around so fast she shook flour powder over the table and floor.
“Ah, mi daed, (oh, my dad) I didn’t hear you come in.”
“Wie geht’s?”
“I’m fine, daed, how are you?”
“Gut, gut, although I‘m little nunnery (sad)”
“Why daed?”
“Was is letz do (What is wrong here)? Mannsleit (men) are telling stories on you. They even went to the Bishop and asked to shun you.”
“Der Herr bilf mir” (The Lord help me) she spoke loudly. I am trying not to be falsch (resentful) but ---”
Adam ran in. “Guder mariye daed Jacob (Good morning dad Jacob). I saw you come in, but had to finish a job.”
Charity turned to him and threw her arms around his neck sobbing. She finally was able to tell him what her father had come to talk about. Adam got red in the face.
“Charity is my frau and I lieb (love) her. I resent the nixnootzich (good for nothing) who spreads this manure. My wife was not nockich (naked); she was on her own property, not out in public and only had her feet and calf of her leg in the water.