Chapter Three
On Sunday, Ella sat on the hard pine bench listening to Deacon King preach. She always enjoyed when he preached, for his sermons were spirited in nature and always full of good, practical guidance taken right from Scripture. Sometimes the preachers, especially those who occasionally visited their church, were not as eloquent as Deacon King. With his long white beard and shaved upper lip, he was a striking older man. His voice was kind and never condescending, especially when he spoke before the congregation. And he always preached about matters that seemed appropriate to whatever was happening in the community at that moment.
Today, John King was preaching about humility and why it was so important for the congregation to keep modest views of their own importance. For Ella, it was a timely sermon, and she certainly hoped that she was not the only person seated on the hard pine benches who was not just listening to but actually hearing the deacon.
On that Sunday, service was held at the Millers’ farm. Ella knew at least one person who wasn’t listening to the sermon, and that was Drusilla. She was too busy making moon-eyes at Timothy Miller, who sat on the other side of the barn in the back with the rest of the baptized, but unmarried, young men. Though many of the young men in Echo Creek were either already walking out with someone or, according to Linda, beneath her daughters, Drusilla clearly was interested in Timothy.
Ella could understand why.
He was a tall, stocky young man, no more than twenty-two years old. He was fine-looking—not that personal appearances should matter—and hailed from a kindly family; on top of those attractive qualities, he was destined to inherit his father’s farm. Most young women would love to have Timothy Miller escort them home from a singing, or even toss a pebble or two at their window, and Drusilla was no different.
But with her tendency to avoid chores, both inside and outside the house, Drusilla would make a poor match for an aspiring farmer who would require a hard-working partner, not just a wife.
The other church leaders were now commenting on Deacon King’s sermon. Half listening, Ella looked ahead of her and saw the back of her friend Belle’s prayer kapp. There was a woman who, despite the odds, had found an unusual match in Adam Hershberger. Even though she could not spot Adam on the other side of the barn, Ella was pleased to see Belle attending worship.
Earlier that morning, Ella, Anna Rose Grimm, Sadie Whitaker, and Belle Hershberger had walked down the lane together. They were good friends, although Ella was closest with Belle and Sadie. Usually they all sat together in church, or at least near one another. But not today, for Belle now sat with the married women, and Sadie and Ella sat on the bench in front of Anna Rose, who was younger than they. People sat on the benches according to their marital status and their age.
With the exception of guests.
One of the young men on the other side of the barn stood up and quietly excused himself. Ella watched, her eyes once again scanning the rear of the barn where the men sat. As the departing man moved, Ella noticed a strange face staring in the direction of the deacon. He was a young man with thick, curly, dark hair that hung over his forehead. And Ella knew that she had never seen him before.
Curiosity got the best of her, and she wondered who he was. Perhaps because he was seated in the back, no one else had noticed him. Not yet, anyway. Ella suspected that, upon catching a glimpse of the handsome stranger, the young women would fight over trying to serve him for the fellowship meal. She could only imagine her stepsisters’ reaction.
The time came to sing “Das Loblieb,” the second hymn of the three-hour worship service.
Oh, how Ella loved to sing!
And the only thing better than singing a hymn to praise God and recognize the sacrifices of those who believed in Jesus was singing with the congregation during worship.
There was something amazing about two hundred or more people singing in unison as they lifted their voices to praise God. It didn’t matter if some people were off-key or sang too softly to be heard. Sometimes people forgot the words to a hymn—although no one ever forgot “Das Loblieb,” for it was Hymn 131 of the Ausbund and the second hymn sung at every church service regardless of what church district was meeting.
O Lord Father, we bless thy name,
Thy love and thy goodness praise;
That thou, O Lord, so graciously
Have been to us always.
Thou hast brought us together, O Lord,
To be admonished through thy word.
Bestow on us thy grace.
As she began to sing the second verse, Ella kept her eyes shut, her face lifted just a little toward the ceiling of the barn. She could feel the power of God’s love flowing through her as she sang her prayer for God to bestow upon her the wisdom to glorify him through both word and deed, to speak with truth of his power, and to live in submissive righteousness in order to honor God and his glory.
Whenever she sang “Das Loblieb,” Ella found herself remembering her mother’s last words: Be kind and good, no matter what happens, for God has a plan for you. Just singing those beautiful words to Hymn 131 renewed Ella’s faith and gave her strength to face another week living with her stepmother and stepsisters. After all, her mother had promised her that God had a plan for her, and surely that plan was more than just slaving away for Linda and her daughters.
When the fourth and final verse of the hymn ended, Ella opened her eyes. But something felt odd, as if someone were watching her. Discreetly, she scanned the room. Most people were quietly waiting for the next preacher to stand up to give his sermon—the shorter of the two for the day.
Well, almost everyone was waiting.
One pair of bright blue eyes, so blue that they stood out among the sea of men wearing black who faced the place where the preacher stood in the middle of the room, was focused on her.
It was the stranger.
Quickly, Ella looked away. She pressed her lips together and turned her eyes toward the preacher. But that didn’t help, for she could still feel the intensity of those blue eyes on her. She felt heat rise to her cheeks, and she tried to remain focused, even as she wondered if he was still watching her. Curiosity drew her own eyes back to him.
Sure enough, he had not torn away his gaze.
Once again, Ella’s eyes flickered away from him, and she forced herself to pay attention to the preacher. She wanted to hear what he said. She also knew that she needed to hear him, for that particular preacher had a habit of approaching the young people after the service and inquiring about what they had learned from his sermon. Woe to the person who could not answer him correctly! While he had never asked her, Ella knew that some young people who hadn’t been able to answer him correctly were subjected to lengthy visits at the preacher’s house during the week to listen to a long, one-on-one reiteration of the sermon.
Despite knowing this, Ella continued to glance occasionally to where the stranger sat.
Fortunately, the young man was paying attention to the service now.
After the preacher’s sermon and lengthy prayer, it was time for the third and final hymn. Ella tried to concentrate on the words that she sang. But it was increasingly difficult, for she felt rather than saw that the stranger was once again watching her. This time, Ella somehow felt the courage to look at him while she sang.
Even as he, too, sang, his eyes were upon her. It was as if he was listening just to her. Was it possible to filter out the voices of over two hundred people? To hear just one voice among the many? If it was possible, Ella would have guessed that was what the young man was doing. The way he watched her made her feel as if he was hearing no other voice but her own.
Feeling uncomfortable, she stopped singing and merely mouthed the words, pretending that she was singing.
Who was he? And, if he was truly a guest, why was he seated in the back with the other unmarried men?
The hymn ended, and it was time for the kneeling prayer. The sound of two hundred people kneeling down and pressing their foreheads against their folded hands as they rested on the pine benches quickly gave way to silence. A long silence. Not even one child fussed during the silent prayer.
Ella took this time to pray for her stepmother and her stepsisters. She also prayed for her friend Sadie, who was going through a rough time with her own stepmother, and for her friend Belle, who had just recently married a man she did not love. With so many people in need of God’s love and caring hand, Ella never even stopped once to think about praying for her own needs.
When the prayer ended and she stood up, her back toward the center of the room as she faced the wall, Ella found herself feeling as if God were in the room with everyone. Perhaps her prayers would be answered this week, she thought. Perhaps this week God would help the people in Echo Creek who needed it the most.
She genuflected before turning around. The men were standing now, and it was nearly impossible to locate the stranger. And yet she had hoped to spot him. Perhaps she might see him talking with someone and get a hint as to who, exactly, he knew in Echo Creek.
Try as she might, she could not find him.
“Oh, Ella. There you are!”
She looked up and saw Deacon King’s wife, Miriam. A stout but cheerful woman who had always been a take-charge kind of person, Miriam was hurrying toward her. “How are you today, Miriam?” Ella asked with a warm smile on her face. She had always admired Miriam King for her kind heart and quick wit.
Unlike many of the other aging Amish women in Echo Creek, Miriam did not always hold her tongue. If she saw something she didn’t quite like, she would not hesitate to point it out. Ella often wished that she could be more like Miriam King.
“I’m in a hurry today, I’m afraid,” Miriam replied. Then, as if she noticed Ella’s eyes scanning the large area of the barn, she asked, “Are you looking for something in particular, Ella?”
Embarrassed that she had been caught, Ella felt the heat rise to her cheeks. “Not something, but someone.” She shook her head, suddenly feeling silly. She redirected all of her attention to the deacon’s wife. “I’m sorry, Miriam. You were looking for me?”
Miriam gave her a sideways glance. “Must be someone important, then.”
“Oh, no!” Ella was quick to dismiss that idea. “Nee, it’s not like that at all. Just that I noticed a stranger was among us, and I was curious as to whom he arrived with.”
“I see.” Despite those two words, it was clear to Ella that the older woman did not see at all.
“It’s not important. Honest.” Another smile. “What did you need me for?”
“What?” Miriam gave her a quizzical look before the realization seemed to strike her that she had, indeed, been looking for Ella. “Oh help! I reckon I’m getting to be an old, ferhoodled woman.” She gave a light little laugh. “Ja, I was looking for you.” She touched Ella’s arm and guided her away from the other people, leaning close to her as if telling her a grave secret. “I usually help in the kitchens, but I must leave before the fellowship meal to go visit some family. I was wondering if you might take my place in the kitchen? You always seem much more attentive than some of the others.” As she said that, Miriam glanced in the direction of Drusilla and Anna.
Ella suppressed a smile. “Ja, of course, Miriam.”
The older woman gave a sigh as if relieved that Ella had agreed. She patted the younger woman’s arm. “Such a good girl. You always have been.” Then, lowering her voice, Miriam added, “Some day you’ll make a wunderbarr gut fraa to a very special young man.”
The compliment caught Ella off guard. She wasn’t used to flattering remarks. It just wasn’t the way of the Amish. Coming from Miriam King, it felt extra special. Still, to acknowledge the praise would be to sound prideful. “Oh, Miriam, no more so than any other, I reckon.”
At that comment, Miriam chuckled and gave her arm one last pat. “We’ll see about that, Ella Troyer.” And then she hurried away to gather her things and join her husband, who was waiting near the door.
Ella puzzled over Miriam’s strange behavior for only a few seconds. Then she hurried toward the house, where she knew that the other older women were preparing the platters of food in the kitchen. Outside the barn, the men were busy carrying the worship benches to a shaded area, quickly converting them into long tables for the dinner meal.
On her way to the house, as Ella passed through the different clusters of waiting people, she looked for the stranger who had attended the worship service. But he was nowhere to be found. He wasn’t among the young men who were standing around catching up on the latest news and probably talking about the youth gathering that evening. Nor was he among the older men.
“Where are you going, Ella?” Sadie called out as Ella passed a group of young women.
“Going to lend a hand to the women. Want to come with me?”
Without even hesitating, Sadie nodded and joined her. Ella noticed that none of the other young women offered to help. Miriam’s words echoed in her mind.
As they approached the porch, Ella paused and cast one more glance at the sea of men standing near the tables. “Sadie,” Ella asked cautiously, “did you happen to see someone new seated with the young men in the back of the barn today?”
Her friend frowned and gave her a quizzical look. “Nee, I did not. Why?”
“No reason,” Ella said with a slight shrug. She felt foolish just for having asked the question. “Just thought I saw a newcomer. Was wondering who he might be.”
As she held the door open for her friend, Ella sighed. Was it possible that he had slipped away, along with the other members of the church who couldn’t stay for the fellowship hour, such as Miriam King and Belle Hershberger, or had she merely imagined the young man? She slipped inside the door, realizing that she probably would never know.