It’s time for bed, Becky,” Ellen Blackburn called from the kitchen, where she sat with a cup of herbal tea. She’d put a cherry pie in the oven after talking on the phone with her friend Barb. While Ellen waited for the pie to bake, she jotted a few things down on her grocery list. The store where she frequently shopped had good prices on fresh fruits and vegetables this week, and she wanted to make sure the fridge was restocked with healthy items.
Ellen was careful about food choices, not only for herself, but also for her ten-year-old daughter. She wanted to be a good role model and start Becky out young, teaching her good eating habits. Ellen believed if people ate healthy food, nine times out of ten, they would stay healthy throughout their life. Every so often, though, like this evening, Ellen got in the mood to bake something on the sweeter side.
Hearing voices from the other room, Ellen shouted once more: “Becky, please turn off the TV.”
But again, her daughter did not respond.
Setting her cup on the table and pushing her chair aside, Ellen rose to her feet. Is Becky so engrossed in the program she’s watching that she doesn’t hear me?
When Ellen entered the living room, she was surprised to discover that even though the television was still on, Becky was asleep on the couch.
She pointed the remote toward the TV and turned it off, then bent down and gently shook her daughter’s shoulder. “Wake up, sweetie. It’s time for bed.”
Becky’s eyelids fluttered, then closed again.
Ellen stroked her daughter’s olive-tone face. “Wake up, sleepyhead. You need to brush your teeth and go to bed.”
Yawning, Becky sat up and swung her legs over the couch. “I missed the rest of my show, Mom. I wanted to see how it ended.”
“I’m sure it’ll be back as a rerun soon.”
“Yeah, and since school will be out for the summer soon, I can watch all my favorite programs.”
Ellen shook her head. “Sorry, honey, but you’re not going to spend the whole summer watching TV. There are lots of other things you can do.”
“Like what?”
“I’m thinking about signing you up for a children’s cooking class.” Ellen pointed to the newspaper lying on the coffee table. “I read about one, and I believe you would enjoy it.”
Becky squinted her hazel-green eyes, the way she always did when she was thinking. “Would it be just me and the teacher, or would other kids be there too?”
“I doubt it would only be you. I’m sure other children would take part in the class.”
“I don’t wanna do it then.”
Ellen sighed. Sometimes Becky’s shyness got in the way of her making new friends. It was something she needed to work through. Learning how to cook with other children might be exactly what her daughter needed.
“We’ll talk about this later. Right now, you need to get your teeth brushed.”
“Okay, Mom.”
Ellen watched her daughter skip down the hallway toward the bathroom. Then a smoky aroma reached her nostrils.
“Oh no!” Ellen ran toward the kitchen. “Bet I forgot to turn the oven temperature down. Maybe I’m the one who needs cooking lessons.”
“I’m not tired. I don’t wanna go to bed.” Randy sat on the living-room floor with his arms folded, staring up at Heidi defiantly. His blue eyes held her steady gaze.
This wasn’t the first time the boy had challenged Heidi’s authority. Just when she felt they were gaining some ground, Randy exuded stubbornness.
In a firmer tone, Heidi said, “Please do as I say and help your sister pick up the toys.”
Randy continued to sit, holding his lips in a straight line. Marsha sat beside her brother, seemingly oblivious to the conflict going on. Her blond ponytail bobbed as she rocked back and forth, holding her baby doll.
With a sigh of exasperation, Heidi turned to look at Lyle. He sat on the sofa reading the latest edition of The Connection magazine.
Lyle set the magazine aside and rose to his feet. Then he marched across the room, bent down, and looked directly at Randy. “Okay, little buddy, let’s go brush your teeth, and then I’ll tuck you into bed.”
Without a word of argument, the boy gathered his toys, put them in the wicker basket across the room, and padded down the hall.
Heidi pursed her lips. Now why couldn’t Randy have done that for me? Although pleased because the child obeyed Lyle, it frustrated Heidi that he hadn’t listened to her. Do I need to take a firmer hand or try to be more patient?
At times like this, Heidi wondered if she had what it took to be a good parent. Of course, she reminded herself, if I had been given the opportunity to raise a child from infancy, things might be different.
For a brief moment, her thoughts went to the baby she and her husband had almost adopted—until Kendra Perkins changed her mind and decided to keep her infant daughter. Well, that was in the past, and she needed to move on.
Remembering that Marsha still sat on the floor, holding her doll, Heidi knelt next to the child. “It’s time for bed, Marsha.” She held out her hand.
The little girl looked up at her and blinked several times. Then, with a quick nod, she took Heidi’s hand and stood.
Heidi smiled and hugged the child, relieved that Marsha hadn’t put up a fuss. This was progress. Often, when Randy became stubborn, his sister did too.
Heidi led Marsha down the hall and into the room that would have been their baby’s nursery, had they been able to adopt. Since Marsha sometimes woke up crying during the night, Heidi wanted her to sleep in a room close to the bedroom she shared with Lyle. When the children arrived last December, Lyle had set up two small beds in the nursery so Marsha and her brother could be together. But a few months later, Randy decided he wanted to sleep in one of the upstairs bedrooms. The little guy tried to be so independent and brave, but at times Heidi found him crying. She tried to offer comfort, but Randy always pulled away. He seemed more comfortable with Lyle. Heidi assumed the boy had been close to his father and related better to a man.
“Let’s put your doll on the bed so we can take off your dress and put your nightgown on.” Heidi spoke softly to Marsha, and she felt grateful when the little girl did what she asked.
Once Marsha was in her nightgown, Heidi led her down the hall to the bathroom so she could wash her face and brush her teeth. After the task was done, they returned to the bedroom.
Before Heidi pulled back the covers, she handed Marsha her doll, and then helped the child into bed. Leaning over, she placed a gentle kiss on the little girl’s forehead. “Sleep well, little one.”
Marsha’s eyelids fluttered, then closed. In no time at all, she was asleep.
Seeing a need for the Amish-style dress the child had worn today to be washed, Heidi picked it up and quietly left the room. She’d begun dressing Randy and Marsha in Plain clothes soon after they’d come to live with them. She and Lyle were also teaching the children some Pennsylvania Dutch words. Since Marsha and Randy would be staying with them, perhaps indefinitely, it only made sense to introduce them to Amish customs, as well as their traditional language. Someday, if the children desired it, they might join the Amish faith.
After Heidi put Marsha’s dress in the laundry basket, she returned to the living room, where she found Lyle sitting on the sofa reading The Connection again.
“Marsha’s in bed sleeping. How’d things go with Randy?” she asked, taking a seat beside him.
He placed the magazine in his lap, turning to look at her. “I don’t know if he’s asleep or not, but at least the little guy is in bed.”
“I’m beginning to wonder if he will ever respond as positively to me as he does to you.” Heidi sighed. “I think Randy resents me for some reason.”
Lyle shook his head. “It’s not you he resents, Heidi. Randy is still trying to come to terms with his parents’ death, and I suspect he might be angry at them for leaving him and his sister. If there’s anything he resents, it’s having to live with strangers.”
She bit down on her bottom lip. “Do you think he doesn’t care for wearing Amish clothes or being asked to learn our language?”
“I don’t know. Randy is hard to figure out, but I’ve never heard him say anything negative about wearing Amish clothes or learning our Pennsylvania Dutch words.” Lyle clasped Heidi’s hand, squeezing it gently. “We need to be patient and keep showing the children how much we care about them. Eventually they’ll come around.”
Heidi slowly nodded. “I hope and pray you’re right. When Gail Saunders, the social worker, comes around again to see how things are going, I wouldn’t want her to think Randy and Marsha don’t like it here.” Tears welled in her eyes. “I want them to continue living with us, Lyle.”
“So do I. We need to remember that if it’s the Lord’s will for the children to remain in our care, things will work out for everyone.”