A Wedding for Julia (49 page)

Late December

C
aleb walked across the southwest corner of the roof of Tim’s new barn. When he’d reached the corner where Tim was perched, he sat beside him. They both looked out over the women and children—numbering more than a hundred—dashing back and forth in what remained of the December afternoon light.

The day had been cool, but not as cold as some Decembers.

Not as cold as that day in November.

They had raised the barn the old way—wood and peg mortise. Caleb had been present when Tim met with Eli Stutzman, who served as the master Amish engineer on the project. Eli lived on the east side of Pebble Creek. He had told Tim they could use more modern methods, but Tim had wanted the old ways.

“Looks
gut
.” Caleb picked up his hat and reset it to block out the westerly sun.

“It’s twice as big as the one the storm took.” Tim shook his head. “I suspect it will last twice as long.”

“
Gotte
willing,” Caleb said.

“Yeah. God willing.”

The small house Tim, Jeanette, and the children shared—what had once been the original property’s
grossdaddi
house—had been untouched by the storm. The barn, which sat only a quarter mile from the house, had been reduced to a pile of lumber—the parts they could find. Much of it was simply gone.

In the immediate aftermath of the storm, Caleb, Julia, and Ada had lived with Tim and his family. Although many in their congregation had offered them a place to stay, it had made more sense to stay close. Because their properties bordered each other, it had been easy to share their resources. Sharon had traveled back to Indiana. Wess had slept on the couch, giving up his room to Caleb and Julia. A small bed had been moved into Jeanette’s office for Ada.

Over the last six weeks the community had rebuilt each home, each barn, and each business that had been destroyed or damaged. Amish workers had come by the busload, week after week, until the work was finished. Donations had poured in from Amish communities through the United States, which hadn’t surprised Caleb—and from
Englisch
congregations, which had.

Tim’s barn was the last structure to be rebuilt, erasing the final loss from the storm. Each time Caleb had broached the subject, Tim had explained he was waiting on his insurance agent to process his claim. He had finally given up on waiting and given the go-ahead for the project.

“I saw you meeting with your agent after lunch.”

“Russell? Yeah. He’s a friendly sort.”

“Everything straightened out?”

“Sure.” Together they made their way down two ladders that were propped side by side. “He finally brought by my check to begin repairs on the barn.”

“You don’t say?”

Tim’s grin spread from one wind-burned cheek to the other. “I signed it over to Bishop Atlee.”

“
Ya?
”

“And I canceled my policy.”

Together they headed toward the two women waiting for them, walking past neighbors and friends who called out a word of greeting as tools were packed away and leftover food was carried through the cold to waiting buggies.

“You canceled it?”

“Yeah. I can find better places to put that money. A good friend once told me that God knows our past and our future. I believe I’ll put my trust in Him.”

Caleb stopped and put one hand on Tim’s shoulder. “It’s a big step. Our ways are not for everyone.”

“I know that. I’m still finding the answers that work for me and my family. Dropping the property insurance might be unwise somewhere else, but here? Here we know our neighbors, and we know they’re dependable, good people.”

They both turned and looked back at the barn. The wood-frame structure, which had been completed in a single day, rose against a cloudless sky. A small crew of men would return the following week to help with finishing what needed to be done so Tim would be able to use it through the remaining winter months.

Jeanette and Julia joined them as the workers began filing past. Words of thanks and gratitude were given and received—words of grace.

Wess followed Zoey and Victoria into the house. The children had survived the storm unscathed, though Zoey still woke screaming in the middle of the night at least once a week.

When it was only the four of them, Caleb twined his fingers with Julia’s right hand. Her left arm had required a long row of stitches, and she still saw a physical therapist once a week to ensure she would regain full strength in it.

They walked across the pasture and down the path that led to their back porch—their new back porch.

“How was Lydia today?” he asked.

“
Gut
, and the baby is so sweet, Caleb. When I hold him, I think of our child and feel grateful.” She placed her hand on her stomach as she spoke, as if she needed to caress the child in her womb.

“
Ya
?”

“Miriam says
Gotte
gives us dreams for a reason. I’m so thankful we will have children in our home and that we were able to help Sharon.”

They stopped at the pasture fence. Missy and Red trotted over to see if there were raisins. As Caleb reached into his pocket, he marveled that his family and horses had been saved. Structures could be rebuilt, but it was a gift beyond grace to still have each other and the animals they had depended on for so long.

David’s place, though close to the cabins, had not even been touched.

Amish Anthem sustained only moderate roof damage. In fact, most of downtown was spared.

Many of the families on the east side of town, both Amish and
Englisch
, had suffered some damage. The homes with more complete destruction, like Caleb’s and the Aaron’s cabins, tended to be on the east side. And yet there had been no loss of life. Injuries, to be sure, but those folks would heal with time.

Caleb squeezed her hand. They had been through so much together in the first few months of their marriage. He was sure she was right. God was in control of their lives.

They were nearly at the house when she said, “We received a letter from Sharon today.”

“
Ya?
”

“I didn’t even have to walk to our mailbox. The letter carrier knew how I’d been watching for word from her, so he brought it over.”

“Nice of him.”

“I think he actually wanted a closer look at the barn raising.” She lingered on the back porch watching Pebble Creek, but he pulled her inside, out of the cold.

“I have warm tea ready for both of you,” Ada called from the kitchen.

“
Danki
,” Caleb answered.

After removing her coat, Julia sat in the chair he pulled out for her, unwinding her scarf but fiddling with the strings of her outer prayer
kapp
.

“So what did it say?” He pulled the
kapp
loose, kissed her cheek, and sat down next to her.

“She wrote she was having a
wunderbaar
visit with her family, and that
Gotte
is still working with her dreams and her fears…” Julia hesitated.

“Any word about the trial of the men who tried to abduct her?”

“I didn’t understand all of it, but there will be no trial. There was plenty of evidence against them, and three eyewitnesses from three separate incidents, including Sharon’s. The men pleaded guilty in order to receive a reduced sentence.”

“So she won’t have to testify?”

“
Nein
. She sounded relieved about that.”

When she stopped and glanced up, he was surprised to see tears in her eyes. “And she’d like to come back in the spring.”

“We’d be happy to have her.
Ya
?”

“We would. I’ve missed her, and I know
mamm
has as well.”

Caleb heard Ada pouring the tea in the kitchen. He stood to go help her but then turned back, ducked his head, and kissed Julia quickly on the lips.

“What was that for?”

“Can’t a husband kiss his
fraa
for no other reason than he loves her?”

“I suppose he can.”

As he clomped into the kitchen, his muscles already stiffening from the long day of work, he realized he was happier than he’d ever been. And although the storm had taken more than was fair—in lives, in property, and in moments of fear—it had also given them much.

Those moments by Julia’s side, when he’d thought he had lost her, were the longest of his life.

He’d seen then, seen as crystal clear as he’d ever seen anything, exactly how precious each moment and each person was.

“The Lord is
gut
,” Ada murmured as she set sugar and cream on a tray to be taken into the sitting area—their new sitting area. The home was one story now, with the café in a separate building attached by a breezeway. They would reopen their business the first week of the new year.

“Indeed He is, Ada. Indeed He is.”

Author’s Note

I would like to thank my friend Bonnie Hinman for being an inspiration to me. She survived the EF5 tornado that struck Joplin, Missouri, in May 2011. The building she was in collapsed on top of her, but she emerged unscathed. Her courage and faith were in the front of my mind as I wrote the final scenes of this book.

The weather described in the last chapters is based on an actual historical occurrence. On November 11, 1911, the Great Lakes Region and Upper Midwest experienced extraordinary weather events. Record highs and lows were broken on the same day. The storm system produced F2, F3, and F4 tornadoes. Rock County, Wisconsin, endured a blizzard within one hour of being hit by an F4 tornado. Many towns were affected by that day’s weather. Nine people died in Janesville, Wisconsin, alone. I would like to offer a special dedication to the towns, victims, and survivors of that long-ago storm.

I also would like to note that the recipes included in this story were patterned after recipes included in a very old cookbook from the Nappanee, Indiana, area.

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