Growing Up in Lancaster County (15 page)

Pap stepped up to the table and greeted Rachel with a smile. “I see you brought us some water.” He poured some into a paper cup and drank. “Ah…now that sure hits the spot! Danki, Rachel.”

“You’re welcome.” Rachel decided to stay and watch the workers awhile. Suddenly, the ladder Uncle Amos stood on wobbled, and his hammer dropped to the ground with a thud.

Rachel rushed forward and reached for it.
Smack!—
she bumped heads with her oldest brother, Henry, who’d also reached for the hammer.

“Ouch!” Rachel and Henry said at the same time.

“Are you two okay?” Grandpa asked with a look of concern.

“I’m fine. It’s just a little bump,” Rachel said.

Henry nodded. “I’m okay, too.” He looked at Rachel. “You shouldn’t have tried to pick up that hammer.”

“I was only trying to help.” She rubbed her forehead.

“I was going to get it.” Henry shook his head. “You shouldn’t even be near the worksite, Rachel. Don’t you realize this is men’s work?”

Rachel clamped her teeth together.
The men and boys get to have all the fun, she thought. I wish I’d been a boy!

Pap touched Rachel’s shoulder. “Maybe you should go see if your
mamm
[mom] has something for you to do.”

“That’s right.” Grandpa smiled at Rachel. “We’ll see you at noon, when it’s time for lunch.”

With head down and shoulders slumped, Rachel headed up the driveway.
Oomph!
—she ran right into someone, spilling a can of nails all over the ground.

She looked up. Orlie Troyer, her friend from school, stared at her.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

She nodded. “I–I’m fine. I’ll help you pick up the nails.”

“Don’t bother; I can manage.” Orlie scooped up a handful of nails and tossed them back in the can. “What are you doing out here by the worksite, Rachel?”

“I took water to the men.”

“Well, you’d better get back to the house before you get hurt. Working on the greenhouse is men’s work.”

“What would you know about that? You’re not a man!” Before Orlie could respond, Rachel hurried away.

When she came to the pile of lumber, she paused. Some pieces didn’t look so big. She figured she could probably carry a few of them to the worksite. Maybe then everyone would see that she could help with the greenhouse, too—even if she wasn’t a man.

Rachel bent and picked up a piece of wood. “Ouch! Ouch!”

Tears filled her eyes as pain shot through her thumb. She let the wood fall to the ground and stared at her hand. An ugly splinter was stuck in her thumb!

Jacob rushed to her. “What are you yelling about, Rachel?”

She held out her hand. “I’ve got a nasty
schliffer
[splinter] in my thumb.”

“How’d you do that?”

“I picked up a piece of wood to take to the worksite.” Rachel’s chin trembled as she struggled not to cry. She didn’t want Jacob to call her a boppli. “I didn’t know there’d be splinters in the lumber.”

“It’s wood, little
bensel
[silly child]. It’s bound to have splinters.” Jacob clicked his tongue the way Mom often did. “You can help best by going to the house and helping Mom get our lunch ready.”

“I will—after she takes the schliffer out of my finger.” Sniffling and blinking, Rachel hurried to the house.

Rachel found her sister, Esther, as well as Mom, Grandma Yoder, and several other women, scurrying around the kitchen, making sandwiches.

Mom motioned to the refrigerator. “Good, you’re just in time to help us with—” She stared at Rachel. “Have you been crying?”

Rachel nodded. “I—I had some trouble outside.”

“What kind of trouble?” Esther asked.

“First I bumped heads with Henry when I was trying to pick up a hammer. Then I ran into Orlie and knocked a can of nails out of his hand.” Rachel sniffed a couple of times. “Then I was going to carry some wood over to the worksite, but I ended up with this!” Rachel held up her throbbing thumb.

“
Ach
[Oh], that’s a nasty-looking schliffer,” Mom said, clicking her tongue. “I’d better get that out for you.”

Sniff! Sniff!
“It’s gonna hurt, isn’t it?”

“Taking it out might hurt a little, but it will hurt much worse if the splinter stays in your thumb,” Mom said.

Grandma nodded. “And if you don’t take it out, it could get infected.”

“Sit down and I’ll take care of it.” Mom went to the cupboard and returned with bandages, antiseptic, a pair of tweezers, and a needle from her sewing basket.

Rachel sank into a chair and closed her eyes. She hoped it wouldn’t hurt too badly. She hoped she wouldn’t start sobbing.

Esther held Rachel’s hand and spoke soothing words while Mom dug out the splinter. “It’s okay, Rachel. The schliffer will be out soon.”

Rachel kept her eyes shut and struggled not to cry as Mom poked at the splinter with the needle.

“Got it!” Mom dabbed Rachel’s thumb with some antiseptic and covered it with a bandage. “Does that feel better?”

Rachel opened her eyes. “It still hurts a little, but not as much as it did before.”

Grandma patted Rachel’s shoulder. “You’re a brave little girl.”

Rachel liked hearing that she was brave, but she didn’t like being called a little girl. She figured it was best not to tell that to Grandma, though.

“It’s sure a warm day.” Mom fanned herself with the corner of her apron.

“It is a bit
schtinkich
[stuffy] in here,” Esther agreed.

“Why don’t you two sit and rest awhile?” Grandma suggested. “Rachel and I can finish making the sandwiches. Isn’t that right, Rachel?”

Rachel nodded. At least Grandma thought she was grown up enough to help with lunch. She glanced out the kitchen window and spotted Jacob and Orlie hauling more wood to the worksite. They walked slowly down the driveway. Rachel figured they were probably hot and tired.

I guess it is hard work. It might be more fun for me to watch the men build the greenhouse than try to help with it
. Rachel smiled as she thought,
I can hardly wait to help Grandpa after the greenhouse is open for business!

T
he sun cast an orange tint into Rachel’s room as she scrambled out of bed on Monday. Since school was out for the summer, Grandpa had promised to take Rachel to town with him. He was going to buy some things he needed for his new greenhouse. Rachel looked forward to spending the day with Grandpa.

Rachel raced to the closet, put on a clean dress, and rushed out the door. When she got to the bottom of the stairs, she stopped and sniffed. The sweet smell of cinnamon coming from the kitchen made her stomach rumble.

I’ll bet Mom baked cinnamon rolls
. Rachel smacked her lips in anticipation.

When she entered the kitchen, she was surprised to see just one bowl and a small plate on the table. Mom was the only one in the room.

“
Hoscht du schunn geese
[Have you already eaten]
?
” she asked when Mom turned from the sink, where she was washing dishes.

Mom nodded. “I ate with your
daed
[dad] and
brieder
[brothers] before they went to work in the fields.”

“What about Grandpa?” Rachel asked. “Has he eaten, too?”

“Jah. He’s in the barn getting his horse and buggy ready to go to town.”

Rachel sighed. “I was afraid he might have left without me.”

Mom pointed to the table. “You’d better hurry and eat your cereal and cinnamon roll.”

Rachel scurried to the refrigerator and took out a carton of milk. She poured some into her bowl then returned to the refrigerator and grabbed a pitcher of apple juice.

The juice sloshed in the pitcher as she bounded back across the room.

“
Dummel dich net
[Take your time, don’t hurry]!” Mom said, shaking her head. “You have plenty of time. If you spill juice, it’ll make a sticky mess, and I just scrubbed the floor.”

“Sorry, Mom. I want to eat quickly so I can go to town with Grandpa.” Rachel poured a glass of juice and put the pitcher back in the refrigerator.

“That’s fine, but wash your breakfast dishes before you go.”

“I will.” Rachel sat at the table and bowed her head for silent prayer.
Dear God, Danki for this day I get to spend with Grandpa. Bless this food to my body. Amen
.

“I’ll leave the dishwater in the sink for you to use, and then I’m going outside to hang a few clothes on the line,” Mom said when Rachel finished her prayer. “If I see your
grossdaadi
[grandfather], I’ll tell him you’re eating breakfast and will be out soon.”

“Okay, Mom.”

Rachel quickly ate her cinnamon roll. Then she drank the apple juice. “Mmm…” She smacked her lips. “This is so
gut
[good]. I think I’ll have some more.” She hurried to the refrigerator and poured another glass.

When she started back, she nearly dropped her glass. Cuddles sat on the table, lapping milk from Rachel’s bowl of cereal!

Rachel clapped her hands, and the cat leaped off the table. “Shame on you, Cuddles! You know you’re not supposed to be up there!”

Meow!
Cuddles looked at Rachel as if to say, “I was hungry.”

“Oh, all right.” Rachel put the cereal on the floor beside the cat. “It’s full of germs now anyway, so you may as well eat it!”

Lap…lap…lap
. Cuddles slurped the milk with her little pink tongue.
Crunch…crunch…crunch
. She ate the rest of the cereal.

“What is that cat doing eating from your
schissel
[bowl]?” Mom hollered when she entered the kitchen.

Rachel gulped. “I–I’m sorry, Mom,” she stammered. “I went to the refrigerator to get more juice, and when I turned around, Cuddles was on the table, eating my cereal.”

“And just how did your cereal bowl get on the floor?” Mom asked.

“I—uh—figured since Cuddles had already eaten out of my bowl and it was full of germs, I may as well let her eat the rest of it.”

Mom frowned. “You know how I feel about animals eating from our dishes.” She pointed to Cuddles. “Take her outside right now!”

Rachel picked up the cat and set her on the porch. “Now you be good,” she said as Cuddles curled into a ball and began to purr.

“I’ll wash my dishes now,” Rachel said when she returned to the kitchen. She set the bowl, plate, and glass in the sink and plunged her hands into the soapy water.

“Cuddles probably got in when I went to hang my clothes on the line, so I know it wasn’t your fault she was on the table.” Mom peered at Rachel over the top of her glasses. “But I’d better never see that cat eating out of your dish again! If I do, you’ll wash all the dishes after every meal for a whole week. Is that clear?”

“Jah, Mom,” Rachel nodded. “I’ll make sure it doesn’t happen again.”

A little later, as Rachel and Grandpa headed for town, the buggy hit a pothole in the road, nearly knocking Rachel out of her seat.

“Sorry about that,” Grandpa said. “I didn’t realize there was a rut, or I would have avoided it.”

Rachel looked at him and smiled. “It’s okay, Grandpa. I’m enjoying the ride.”

He grinned and patted her knee. “I like your positive attitude today, Rachel. It’s always good to look on the bright side of things.”

“Sometimes, when things don’t go so well, it’s hard for me to see the bright side,” Rachel admitted.

Grandpa nodded. “That’s when we need to remember Psalm 32:11: ‘Rejoice in the Lord and be glad.’ We should try to rejoice no matter what happens—even in the middle of our troubles.”

Rachel smiled and relaxed against the seat. She enjoyed listening to the steady
clip-clop, clip-clop
of the horse’s hooves and watching all the cars zip past in the opposite lane. She dreamed about riding in a convertible some day, but she wondered if that dream would ever come true. She was sure it would be exciting to travel fast with the top of the car down and the wind in her face.

Beep! Beep!
A horn honked as a car whipped around them.

A muscle on Grandpa’s face quivered as he gripped the reins and guided the horse closer to the side of the road. “There’s way too much traffic today,” he mumbled. “I wish I’d picked a different day to go to town. Maybe we should have stayed home.”

“You’re not going back, I hope.” Rachel had looked forward to spending the day with Grandpa. She’d be disappointed if he decided to go home.

Grandpa shook his head. “Don’t worry. I won’t go home until my errands are done. Fast cars just make me
naerfich
[nervous], and I don’t like all this traffic.”

Rachel didn’t mind the traffic, and she thought fast cars were exciting. She decided not to mention that, though. She didn’t want to say anything that might spoil her day with Grandpa, so she decided to change the subject.

“Did you know my birthday’s coming soon?” she asked.

“I think I may have heard something about that. Remind me now—how old will you be?”

“Eleven.”

“Hmm…” Grandpa’s lips twitched. “You’ve gotten so tall, I thought maybe you’d skipped a few years and had become a teenager.”

Rachel giggled. “Are you teasing me?”

He nodded and chuckled. “You know me. I do like to tease now and then.”