––––––––
Two weeks later, the community service was held at the Fisher farm. Annie, sitting with Jenny and Ruth, enjoyed a light lunch. Feeling a gentle hand on her shoulder, she turned to see Mark’s dark eyes twinkling down at her.
“Would you like to stay for the group sing after lunch?” he asked.
“If my daed and mamm agree to it, yes,” Annie said with her own twinkling smile. Not looking at her friends, she sought her father, then her mother out. She was given permission, as long as she returned before it got dark.
Sitting next to Mark in a large circle, Annie sang several German songs of faith. She, Mark, Jenny, Jacob and Ruth had belonged to this particular group since they had each reached their 16th birthdays. Annie, seeing a young man approach Ruth, who blushed as he asked if he could sit with her, thrilled, knowing that she and her friends were each meeting young men at the same time.
The youth and young adults in the group sing enjoyed this group – as a “high” group, it was less conservative than other groups, allowing members a little more freedom within the group’s rules. When the singing had ended for the day, Mark drove Annie home, getting her to her parent’s house shortly before sunset. Smiling at her, he squeezed her hand and gave her a quick wave good-bye.
Inside, Annie was particularly happy. She visited with her mother as they worked on various crafts. As Annie chose quilt pieces to make for doll quilts for Ruth’s family’s planned tours for Englischer tourists, she chatted with her mother.
“So, do you like Mark?”
“Ya. He is a calm man. He handled the runaway horse situation with Barbara Kurtz . . . mamm, I’ve been thinking of that, and I can’t figure out why Barbara would allow her horse to run wild like that. I’m a good horsewoman . . . but she’s much better. Her little sister suffered a broken arm in that accident.” Annie’s forehead creased in confusion.
“Annie, Barbara has what she needs with her parents. Yet she still wants . . . more. Your daed and I have seen her becoming more and more like her mother as she has gotten older. He warned you to be careful when you are walking out with Mark. He didn’t say why, but I feel as if she is angry that Mark has chosen to court you, and not her. I have seen her at church meetings, looking at Mark when he was not looking.
When he asked us for permission to meet with you and court you, I looked over at her on our side of the picnic tables. She was very unhappy, Annie . . . very unhappy. You know the Ordnung – Amish men and women are expected to follow our traditions and display certain behaviors. She cannot approach a man and express interest in him.
Oh, no! She would run afoul of the church ministers. So, she has to wait until someone expresses an interest in courting her. It’s becoming a vicious circle – she wants someone to court her, and she becomes more and more angry and bitter the longer she waits. Young men who are of courting age see her attitude and this drives them off. And so, it continues.”
“So, she needs to correct her attitude and stop expressing her bitterness, right?”
“Ya. But given that her mother carries that same attitude . . .”
“It won’t be easy,” concluded Annie.
“Nee. It will not,” Mary said as she cross stitched.
For the next few days, while her mother taught at the Peace Landing school, Annie cleaned, cooked and worked on doll quilts for Ruth. Looking with satisfaction at the pile she had already completed, she smiled – at this rate, I’ll have enough for Ruth, and should only need to work on one or two per week during the tourist season. She looked up at a knock on the door. Expecting it to be Mark, she was surprised when her daed came into the first-floor room where she and her mother did their crafting.
“Annie, girl, you have company . . . and it isn’t Mark,” her father said with his warm, brown eyes sparkling.
Annie’s face creased in confusion. As she followed her father to the living room, she saw Mr. Kopp, the head of the Peace Landing school board.
“Mr. Kopp! Good evening! How are you?” Annie asked, feeling nervous.
“I am fine, denki. John, is there some place I can sit down with Annie?” asked Mr. Kopp.
“Come into the kitchen. Would you like some water?”
“Water would be welcome, thank you.” Mr. Kopp sat down with Annie, who clasped her fingers together on top of the wooden table.
“Miss Fisher, I have come to tell you that we have decided to hire you for the next school year. I expect your mamm can sit down with you to do your planning for the next school year. She can also tell you about your new students,” said Mr. Kopp with a large smile beaming out through his dark mustache and beard.
“Denki, Mr. Kopp! Thank you!” Annie smiled widely, relieved to know she would be teaching. After she discussed several details of her new teaching job and signed a simple contract, she escorted Mr. Kopp to the living room, where he left. By that time, Annie’s mother had come home. She began stirring pots and checking the progress of the dinner Annie had already started. As she did so, she excitedly discussed Annie’s new job.
“Mr. Kopp cane here just a little bit before you got home, mamm! I have a contract signed, so I am going to need to sit down with you to talk about planning and students,” Annie said, setting the table.
“Annie, you will enjoy teaching the Peace Landing students. They are all eager, motivated students, ready to learn. The only real problem you’ll have . . .”
“Problem? What kind of problem?” asked Annie with worry.
“You will have to work with the Kurtz children. Sarah is very shy and her younger brothers have that same attitude problem their mother has. I will teach you how I deal with that – no worries, Annie. Just don’t let them get the best of you and you’ll do well throughout the school year. We’ll begin planning your first year as a school teacher this week.”
Annie smiled with excitement, now feeling ravenous with hunger. She and her parent discussed her exciting news as they ate their dinner. Mary had made a roast beef with roasted potatoes and vegetables. She had baked an apple pie, on which she scooped vanilla ice cream, in celebration of Annie’s job offer.
“Mamm, you were saying that some of your students give you some problems. I’d like to know what they are so I can come up with good ways of handling them.”
“Annie, I told you about Sarah Kurtz and her younger brothers. You’ve seen Mrs. Kurtz around Peace Landing, and you know what kind of an attitude she has – that ‘I’m entitled, even if I didn’t work for or earn what I want’ belief she has. Her younger boys have that same attitude, which comes out in their interactions with me. They want me to give them grades they haven’t earned. I don’t communicate with their mother any more. Instead, I address my notes to Mr. Kurtz, asking him to ensure that Ben and Joseph have done their assignments. He’s more willing to work with me, but he’s almost overwhelmed with his work and trying to keep his family from falling apart. Mrs. Kurtz has always had this attitude, but it’s gotten much worse in the last few years.
Sarah is the only child who hasn’t taken on that assumption that she’s due what she wants, regardless of whether she’s earned it. But she still has a problem with her shyness. She does her work and hands it in, but getting her to speak up during school is . . . a challenge,” said Mary, shaking her head sadly.
“Do you think she could benefit from talking to someone about why she’s so shy? What about Ben and Joseph? Would discussing why they think they should just ‘get’ grades would help them adjust their attitude?”
“Are you talking about with an Englischer professional? You know you would need to get permission from the school board and from the Kurtz parents for this,” Mary warned.
“I know . . . I don’t want to violate the Ordnung. But, if a professional starts talking to them, maybe they can start to work on why they are the way they are. Boy! I’m glad I’m talking to you now. At least, I know what to expect next autumn.”
Mary looked seriously at Annie. “We will talk more about this, but, if you decide this is the best solution, please get permission from Mr. Kopp and other members of the school board first. You do not want your first year as a teacher marked with an act that could be considered insubordination.”
Annie’s gaze became sober as she considered the path she wanted to take. “Ya, mamm, I will. I’m only thinking about this right now. I need to know much more about the situation in your – my – classroom first. It might not be the best idea, once I know more.”
Mary, then John smiled at Annie as she spoke. “There’s the cool head I’ve always known was there,” John said as he squeezed Annie’s hand.
Mark stopped at the house shortly after Annie had finished cleaning the kitchen.
“Would you like to go for a walk?” he asked Annie.
“One minute while I let my parents know,” she told him, taking her apron off. “Daed, Mark is here and would like to take a walk. If it’s okay, I’ll be back inside before dark,” she said to her father.
“Be inside before dark. Hello, Mark. Wie geht’s?” asked John.
“It’s gut, denki. How was your day?” Mark asked.
“Very good . . . Annie will have some news for you!”
“Ach, ya? Gut! We will talk about it on our walk. Annie, are you ready?”
Annie held up her sweater in reply, draping it over one forearm. “I’m ready.”
As they walked, they talked about her job offer.
“So you want to bring an Englischer therapist in to help Ben, Joseph and Sarah with their problems in the classroom? I remember Barbara had that attitude in school, as well, but not as badly as she has it now. She’s almost as bad as her mudder. You got good advice from your mamm, and I hope you’ll think about it,” Mark said.
As he walked, he swung his arms and his knuckles brushed against the back of Annie’s hand. Knowing the Ordnung, he had to make himself resist the impulse to take her hand. She was still in the process of making her baptism into the Amish faith, and he did not want to jeopardize her chances. Nor did he want to jeopardize what was becoming more and more a possibility between them – marriage.
“Ya, Mark, I know. I just want to know what I will be facing as I start my first year of teaching. I don’t want to ruin my chances of being a teacher! Mamm and I will be talking about the best ways of dealing with the Kurtz children. A therapist is only one suggestion. You know, when I was attending the community college in New York, I learned that these therapists specialize in working with different age groups. They help their clients by working with them at their level of development.
So, an Englischer therapist would be able to develop a therapeutic relationship and talk about what is making them think and act the way they do. For instance, Sarah is very shy. Mamm told me that it’s very difficult for Sarah to speak out in class. A therapist could help her see why she is so shy, and find ways of handling that so she can start to talk in front of groups without being so uncomfortable.”
“Ach. So a therapist could work with them to help them change their attitudes?”
“Ya.” Annie was about to continue when Mark discreetly touched her arm – Barbara was trundling along, trying to reach them. As she walked, she huffed breathlessly.
“Hello, Mark. How are you today?” As Barbara spoke, a smile stretched widely across her round face, seeming to split it in two.
“We’re fine. If you don’t mind, I’m here, visiting with Annie. Good night.” Lightly touching Annie’s elbow, he directed her back to her father’s farm, where they sat on the porch swing to talk and enjoy the cool evening. Mark pushed the swing gently back and forth, using the toes of his boots to propel the slow, back-and-forth motion.
The couple continued talking quietly, telling each other about their childhoods as they continued getting to know each other. Occasionally, Mark glanced at the distant road, seeing Barbara continuing to walk back and forth in front of the Fisher farm. Every so often, she would stare at them, as if waiting for something.
“Mark, would you like to come inside? She is making me . . . uncomfortable, with all that walking and staring,” Annie said softly.
“Wunderbarr, yes! I feel as if she is waiting for me to start courting her! And she is not the one I want to court . . .” Mark said, standing up. He opened the front door and ushered Annie into the house.