Carrie Lighte - Her Amish Holiday Suitor

His mother must have caught the defensiveness in his voice because she said, “ Neh , I don’t suppose you would, Nick. I only mean I want you to be careful, okay? As I said, Lucy’s not like other meed you’ve courted. She’s...she’s special.”

She’s special all right. She’s so special she thinks she’s a cut above everyone else , Nick thought. As uncomfortable as he was discussing this subject with his mother, he felt it was important to emphasize, “I’ve always considered every woman I’ve courted to be special.”

“I believe you have, suh . But some women are more...they’re more earnest than others. I don’t think Lucy has had many suitors and I wouldn’t want her to get her hopes up about a relationship with you if that’s not a real possibility,” his mother explained.

It seemed a struggle for her to find the right words, but Nick knew what she meant. She meant he’d ended every relationship he’d had so far, and she was assuming he’d end this one, too. As much as Nick resented the implication, he admitted there was an element of truth to it.

“Don’t worry,” he assured his mother. “I’ve made my intentions very clear to Lucy. But she’s not quite as naive as you think. I got the feeling she was reluctant to walk out with me. We’re not even really courting, it’s more like we’re spending time together. I’m sort of helping her with...with one of her charity endeavors for Grischtdaag . After that, we’ll have to see what happens.”

His mother looked perplexed, but she smiled and said, “Well, for your sake, I hope it works out this time. Who knows, Lucy might be a gut influence on you.”

That was exactly what Nick was hoping his parents would think about Lucy, but now that he heard his mother say the words, he was disgruntled. Who was to say he wouldn’t be a good influence on her ? Maybe he’d show her a thing or two about how to lighten up and be a little more social. Didn’t anyone ever consider that?

Mildred and Katura were considerate enough not to turn on the lamp while they were getting ready for bed, but their voices woke Lucy anyway.

“I wish Mark didn’t have to go back to Ohio tomorrow morning,” Mildred whined. “One of the rare few likable guys who comes to Willow Creek leaves as soon as he gets here. It’s not fair. I hope he visits Frederick again at Grischtdaag .”

“Speaking of Frederick, didn’t you tell me he was planning to ask to court Lucy tonight?”

“That’s what Melinda Schrock told me she heard Frederick’s mother saying to Jesse’s ant in the store last week,” Mildred said, and her words caused Lucy to remember what the book of James said about a little fire kindling a great matter.

“Do you think Frederick got a chance to ask to court Lucy before she left with Nick?” Katura questioned.

“Probably not. Otherwise, she would have stayed until the singing was over so Frederick could have given her a ride home. Or she would have asked him for a ride right then since she was sick.”

“I suppose that’s true.” Katura yawned. “Can you believe she asked Nick for a ride instead? That’s awfully forward.”

“ Jah , but Nick’s so nice he probably agreed because he felt sorry for her.”

Lucy considered coughing to let her stepsisters know she was awake and could hear them, but she felt too humiliated. Why didn’t Mildred and Katura believe she hadn’t left because she was ill? Couldn’t they at least entertain the possibility Nick was interested in her?

As if answering Lucy’s unspoken question, Katura said, “One thing’s for sure. He’d never consider being her suitor. She’s not his type. Nick only courts women who are outgoing and adventuresome. You know, women who are more like you and me.”

Lucy heard Mildred gasp. “That’s it!” she exclaimed. “Nick probably wanted to talk to Lucy about one of us!”

“Do you really think so?” Katura questioned, and Lucy discerned the hopeful catch in her voice.

“ Jah. That’s how buwe in Willow Creek sometimes determine if a maedel is interested in being courted. They talk to her friends or sisters. Or if they’re really shy, they’ll pass a note,” Mildred explained knowingly.

“But Nick isn’t shy at all.”

“ Neh , not usually. But maybe he likes one of us so much he’s afraid we’ll reject him. Maybe that’s why it’s taken him so long to propose courtship—he hasn’t been able to work up the courage. So instead of asking us straight out, he’s taking the safe approach.”

Lucy would have been inflamed, but instead she pushed her quilt against her mouth to suppress a giggle. Her stepsisters might have lacked self-awareness, but they sure didn’t lack self-esteem.

“ I should get him. I’m the oldest,” Katura demanded, as if she were competing for a prize.

“You can’t claim him. He’ll decide for himself which one of us he wants to court.”

As her stepsisters bickered about who was more worthy to have Nick as her suitor, Lucy rolled to her side and curled the pillow over her ear to block them out. They may have been right to think Nick didn’t want to court Lucy, but they were just as wrong to imagine he wanted to court either of them. Once again, she stifled a guffaw. She couldn’t wait for her cousin Bridget to visit at Christmastime so they could share a laugh over the hilarious irony of it all.

Lucy woke early on Monday morning, planning to make breakfast for her father before he left for work. Betty and her daughters weren’t early risers, so Lucy cherished the time she had alone with her daed . It was one of the rare occasions when she could get a word in edgewise, but sometimes instead of conversing they ate in companionable silence, enjoying the familiarity of the pattern they’d established years before Betty and the girls moved in. But by the time Lucy dressed, brushed her long hair into a bun and washed her face, she heard the wheels of a car rolling down the lane.

The Amish weren’t allowed to drive or own automobiles, but they were permitted to accept rides from Englischers . Lucy’s father’s colleague, Ray, routinely picked him up since their house was on the way to the woodworking production company where they were employed. Not one to take a neighbor’s generosity for granted, Lucy’s father regularly assisted Ray with significant house and yard projects such as roofing or installing fencing.

Marvin just as well could have taken the buggy to work, but Lucy had an inkling he wanted to be sure there was transportation at home for her. For one thing, if she needed to deliver her goods to Schrock’s Shop, her father didn’t like her to walk, even though Main Street was barely a mile away. For another, Lucy knew he secretly wanted to ensure there was a way for someone to seek medical intervention quickly in the event she developed breathing problems. Two years ago she suffered an acute respiratory attack while she and Betty were at home without a buggy. Betty had had to run to the phone shanty to call for help, and she had wound up gasping so bad by the time the ambulance arrived that the paramedics thought she was the patient. The episode had shaken Lucy’s father deeply, and after that he always left the buggy behind.

Touched by her father’s thoughtfulness, Lucy never let him know that most days it was Mildred or Katura who used the buggy to travel the short distance to their jobs on Main Street, where they worked part-time. They were both cashiers at the mercantile, which was a grocery and goods store catering primarily to Willow Creek’s Amish. Granted, the two young women spent the better part of their shift on their feet, but most Amish meed in their area walked farther than that to get to their jobs.