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“Ne.” He shook his head, settling in the chair again. “She’s the one. For me.” He forced himself to meet Sara’s piercing gaze. “I like Ruby.”
“You’ve made that clear.” Sara’s attitude grew kindly as she slipped on a pair of wire-frame glasses she’d retrieved from her apron pocket. “And it’s clear that you’re uncomfortable here with me. I’m sorry for that. I hope you can come to think of me as a friend, maybe a favorite aunt. I like you, Joseph. You appear to be a fine man and an excellent candidate for one of my brides-to-be. You’re just the sort of man I like to find, someone who isn’t wishy-washy, someone who knows his own mind.” She paused and opened her notebook. She thumbed through until she’d reached a page about halfway through and picked up her pen. She jotted something down and then made eye contact with him again. “Sorry. I have a system, and if I don’t keep to it, I’d forget who was who.”
“Ruby’s not spoken for, is she?” That was the question he’d been dreading to ask. He knew he’d asked Sara that before, but he was afraid that someone had snapped her up since then. Because if there were another suitor, there’d be a whole lot more trouble before things could get worked out. He wasn’t going to give up. Sara had promised she could find him a wife; he just had to make her understand that Ruby was the one for him.
“Well...” Sara tapped her notebook with her pen. “I’d planned to introduce her to a blacksmith.” She looked up. “And I’d wanted you to get to know Arlene. I think you’d be very compatible. But if you’ve seen Ruby and you’re taken with her, there’s no reason why the two of you shouldn’t—”
“Then you have no problem matching us?”
Sara separated her hands and raised them, palms forward. “Now, just slow down, Joseph. It’s customary for my couples to take this one step at a time—get to know each other before a match is actually made. Usually couples attend some singings together, have meals here at the house and see each other at church. Picking a wife or a husband is a serious matter.”
He dropped his straw hat onto his knee and balled his hands into fists. They seemed clumsy, like two clubs rather than hands and he tucked them under his knees. His right foot wanted to bounce on his heel like he did when he was nervous but he forced it firmly to the floor and held it there by force of will. He was sweating. He could feel tiny beads of moisture trickling down the back of his shirt. Sara was looking at him expectantly. She was waiting for him to respond. “I...I know it’s a serious matter. I told you when I first came to you that...that I was serious about finding a wife. And I’m ready. Ruby and me... Ruby and I,” he corrected. “We’ve talked and we both want to court. Each other.”
Sara raised an eyebrow speculatively. “Ruby told you that she’s interested in courting you?”
“Ya, she did. She and I... We...we agreed.”
Sara sat back in her chair. It was an oversize office chair, crafted of oak and comfortably cushioned. The chair swiveled and rocked. It was a chair that Joseph had seen at the chair shop and greatly admired, but it was big for a woman of Sara’s size. She resembled a great-aunt of his, someone who’d always sneaked him cookies when he was a child. The thought of Aunt Rose made it feel a little easier talking to Sara.
Her smile widened. “Your mother said you were shy and that you had a difficult time expressing yourself. That doesn’t seem to be the case at all. I’m impressed. And frankly, young men rarely impress me.”
“I can support her... Support Ruby. And my mother. Mother has to live with us. But I told Ruby, and she’s fine with it. As a mason...a master mason, I can always get work. I’m working with James now. His construction company, I mean. He says he’s got plenty of work for me. And...and I have a house. In my own name.”
Sara wrote something in her notebook. “It’s good to know that you are financially solvent. That you can take on the responsibility of a household as a husband and father, if God blesses you and your future wife with children.”
“I will. I mean...I expect to.” He could feel perspiration trickle down his back. He needed to hurry this along, otherwise he’d be late to the job site and James would be disappointed. He liked to start on time. But this had to be settled first with Sara. About Ruby. He’d lain awake half the night worrying. He couldn’t do that again. He realized that Sara was saying something about a dowry and he jerked upright, giving her his attention again.
“Do you mind?” she said.
“M-mind what?”
“Financial wealth of a girl’s father.” She peered over her glasses at him. “Is that something that’s important to you?”
“Ne.” He shook his head. “I don’t care. Money...money isn’t important to me. I mean...it is, but I don’t expect... It doesn’t matter. Ruby could be penniless. It’s fine.” He took a breath. “So, are we courting? Officially?”
“Ne. You are not. Not yet. It’s simply not the way I operate,” Sara said firmly. “I’m happy that you’re committed, but I’ve had a lot of experience with matching couples. Often young people form attractions, infatuations, if you will. But marriages, good marriages are not built on infatuation. There has to be more, things like mutual respect, compatibility and an equal commitment to faith. Think of it as laying a foundation.” She indicated him with her hand. “You’re a mason. You understand the need for a solid foundation.”
“A house won’t stand without it.”
“Exactly. And for an Amish couple, the foundation is even more important. We marry for life. There’s no divorce. Whoever you choose and whoever chooses you, chooses until death parts you.”
“I—” A knock at the door interrupted what he was going to say.
“Ya?” Sara asked.
The office door opened and a man in a patched blue shirt and raggedy straw hat in his hand peered in. “Mule’s thrown a shoe,” he said. “What do you want me to do?”
“Take him to the smithy, Hiram. A mule can’t work with three feet, can he?”
The door opened wider and Hiram stepped through. He was the man that Joseph had seen unloading a bag of feed from a wagon when he’d driven into Sara’s yard. “Planning on cutting hay in that little field.”
“Then it will have to wait. Tend to the mule first.”
Hiram scratched his head. “Thought you’d say that.”
“I’m in the middle of an appointment,” Sara explained. “Close the door behind you.”
“What do I do for money?” Hiram asked.
“The blacksmith will send me a bill.” She raised a hand and waved at him. “Goodbye, Hiram. Thank you.”
Hiram grimaced. “Leah said don’t bother you. You got somebody in the office.”
“That’s right,” Sara said. “When I’m with someone, I don’t like interruptions unless it’s important. Extremely important.”
“But the mule threw a shoe,” he said doggedly.
She smiled. Her tone was kind when she spoke. “And I trust you to take the mule to the smithy and have a new shoe put on.”
Muttering to himself, Hiram backed out of the room and pulled the door shut behind him.
“My hired man,” Sara explained. “I’m sorry. You were saying?”
Joseph stared at the toes of his work boots. “I was saying that I...that I think we’re compatible. Very...compatible. Ruby, she...she’s kind. She cares about people. I always wanted a kind wife, somebody who...would love me.” The last three words came out as a whisper. It wasn’t that the idea of love that embarrassed him, only saying it out loud. Because he did want a woman who would love him, someone he could love. Not just like. Once, when he was rumspringa, his running-around time before he’d been baptized, he’d seen a romantic movie at an Englisher’s house about a man and woman who were in love, and a message one of them had written and put in a bottle. The movie had been sad. It had made him tear up. But it had been a notion he’d remembered. He didn’t think his mother and father had loved each other like that. Was it greedy to want it for himself?
“Marriage isn’t just about a man and a woman,” Sara was saying.
He wondered if she’d heard what he’d said. What he meant about wanting romantic love in his marriage.
“Marriage is about family,” she continued. “Family and faith, respect and friendship.”
“And love?” he asked, daring to repeat himself and reveal his inner hope.
“Sometimes a couple will be fortunate enough to find love ahead of the marriage, but usually it comes later. That said—” she held up her finger “—there’s nothing wrong with searching for love. At least I don’t think so. But to get back to you and Ruby, we have to go slowly.”
He fiddled with the brim of his hat. “And what if we don’t want that? Ruby and I?”
“I insist. Who is the expert here, Joseph? There’s a lot to consider. In your case, one issue is your mother. What do you think she would say if you rushed into an arrangement and started talking about marriage to a girl you haven’t even walked out with?”
“I don’t suppose she’d like that.” He looked down and then back at Sara. “But Mother wants me to marry. She’s the one who told me to come to you. She said I’d never find someone on my own.”
Sara got up and came around the desk to stand only a few feet from him. Hastily, he got to his feet again.
“I’m sure Magdalena wants the best for you,” Sara said. “But it’s never easy for a woman to welcome another woman into her home. To give up her son to a wife.”
“She’ll have to accept Ruby. I can deal with my mam.” He shuffled his feet. “But what if we want to marry and you don’t agree? Do you have to approve of the match?”
Sara straightened her shoulders. “I can tell you that I once stopped a wedding on the morning of the marriage. I told the bishop and the elders that the couple was not right for each other. They called off the wedding.”
“What did the couple do? Were they unhappy with you?”
“They were. At the time. But a few months proved that I was right. I told you—I know what I’m doing. I don’t make careless matches. I make marriages that are strong and loving, marriages that will only grow stronger through the years. Do this my way, Joseph, and you’ll never regret it.”
“I suppose you’re right,” he admitted. “But I really...like Ruby. And she likes me.” He considered for a moment and then asked. “What happened to the couple? Did...did they ever marry?”
Sara chuckled. “They did, but not to each other. The man married his almost bride’s older sister and the girl married his younger cousin. Both marriages that I arranged. And they have worked out beautifully. Between the four of them, they have nine children, and it’s only been seven years.”
He glanced longingly at the door. “So what happens next? With me and Ruby? About, you know...taking it slowly.”
“We’ll start with a simple supper. Tomorrow night. Be here at six thirty, and bring your appetite.”
“Mother will want to meet her. Can I bring her?”
Sara shook her head firmly. “Too soon. I’ll invite Magdalena when it’s the right time.” She glanced at the schoolhouse clock on the wall. “And now I suppose you want to get off to work.” She opened the door. “Have a good day, Joseph. And don’t be late for supper. I hate it when young men keep my girls waiting.”
Gratefully, he hurried out. He hadn’t gotten all he’d wanted, but neither had Sara rejected him. He wasn’t going to worry. Sara would see how perfect he and Ruby were for each other. He was certain of it. He couldn’t wait to see Ruby tomorrow night, and he couldn’t wait to tell his mother that he’d found the girl he’d been waiting for.
* * *
School was a half day, so Ellie and Ruby were back at Sara’s by twelve thirty. After the midday-meal dishes were cleared away and the kitchen spotless, the two young women went into the garden to pick tomatoes. Leah and Arlene had gone to Fifer’s Orchard to pick apples and Sara was catching up on her sewing.
Despite spending the morning together at the schoolhouse, Ruby was still shy around Ellie. The little schoolteacher seemed nice, like someone Ruby would like to have as a friend. But Ruby had never known someone with dwarfism before and was afraid that her habit of saying whatever popped into her head might cause a problem. She feared she’d blurt out something offensive that would ruin their prospective friendship.
At school, it had been easy to concentrate on the children and forget worrying about saying or doing something awkward. Children always had a positive effect on Ruby. She adored them, and they seemed to respond well to her. If things had been different at home, maybe she would have liked to have been a teacher herself.
The best way to keep from putting her foot in her mouth was to keep it closed, but being quiet never came easy to Ruby. So before she knew it, a question slipped out. “Why aren’t you married, Ellie?” She tried to stop herself but it was too late. There it was, bobbing between them as obviously inappropriate as a mule in a kitchen. “I’m sorry,” she said quickly. “I didn’t mean—”
Ellie responded with a peal of laughter. “You mean why hasn’t Sara been able to find me a husband? My fault, entirely. I’m too picky. I’ve had two marriage proposals since I got here, and I turned them both down.”
Ruby plucked a tomato from a plant and carefully placed the fat tomato into the basket. If you bruised them, tomatoes could go soft before you could get them canned, and that would be a waste. “You did? Were the boys awful?”
Ellie tossed a rotten tomato into the space between the rows. “Ne, they were very nice. And one was very handsome.” She giggled. “He was the hardest to refuse because I really liked him.”
“But you didn’t want to marry him?”
“Nope. I’m not even sure I want to marry. Maybe I like being single.” Ellie ducked down behind a big tomato plant and all Ruby could see were the leaves shaking. “Ha. Thought you were hiding, didn’t you?” Ellie reappeared, brandishing a perfect tomato. “The heritage tomatoes are the hardest to pick because they’re not always that red color that gives them away. But they are delicious.”
“I know,” Ruby agreed. “I love them. They have more taste than the commercial varieties.” She stood to her full height and rubbed the small of her back. Picking tomatoes was hard work because of all the bending. “The boys you turned down,” she said. “Joseph Brenneman wasn’t one of them, was he?”
Ellie giggled again. “Ne, not Joseph. But he’s cute, don’t you think?”
“He is.” Ruby blushed and busied herself in searching for ripe tomatoes. “Was it awkward? Saying no?” she ventured after a few minutes of picking. “Refusing a man’s proposal?”
“Not particularly. Only one of them seemed to take it hard, but he’s found someone else, so I couldn’t have broken his heart.” At this, they both laughed together. As they reached the end of the row, Ellie brushed the dirt off her skirt, glanced up at Ruby and sighed. “My current problem is with a certain blacksmith that I know Sara would like to fix me up with.”
“You don’t like him?” Ruby furrowed her brow. “Or you don’t think he’d like you?”
Ellie shook her head. “It’s more complicated than that.” She lowered her voice and moved closer. “I know Sara means well, but he’s little.”
“Little?” Ruby asked.
“Like me,” Ellie said, throwing up her hands. “A little person. Jakob obviously likes me. But he’s a pest, always trying to wrangle an invitation to dinner or showing up at the schoolhouse with some excuse or another. He’s even trying to get my friends to put in a good word for him.”
“Is that a bad thing?”
Ellie picked a tomato up from the ground, examined it, and then threw it hard against a fence post. The rotten tomato burst, sending a red-winged blackbird skyward in a flurry of tomato bits. “I would never date someone just because he’s little like me.” She gave a little huff. “Right now, I don’t even want to think about it. I’m happily independent. I don’t want to marry anyone. I love teaching at Seven Poplars School. I’m having the best time of my life and I don’t have to do a man’s laundry. But if I do decide to marry, it will be because he’s the one and I can’t live without him. Does that make sense to you?”
“It does,” Ruby agreed. She wondered if Ellie might like this Jakob more than she let on or if it was smart to rule out a person just because of his height, but she didn’t say so. For once, she was able to keep her mouth shut.
“How are you two doing?” Sara called from the garden gate. “Finding many ripe ones?”
“Lots,” Ruby answered. “I need to start another basket. This one’s full.” She picked up the basket with the tomatoes she’d just picked, but when she turned to carry it down the row, she tripped. The basket tipped and half of them rolled out onto the dirt. “Sorry,” she said, making haste to recover the fallen tomatoes.
“Let me help.” Ellie began putting tomatoes back into the basket.
Ruby was mortified. “Sorry,” she mumbled again.
“Don’t worry.” Smiling, Sara walked toward them. “We’ll start another batch of canning tomorrow. It won’t matter if some of them are bruised.” She stopped and made eye contact with Ellie. “Ach. I forgot my soup on the stove. Ellie, would you mind running in and stirring it? Just turn off the flame.”
“I can do it,” Ruby offered.
“Ne, let Ellie go,” Sara said.
“But I don’t mind,” Ruby said, eager to help.
Ellie looked to her. “What Sara is trying to say politely is that she needs to speak to you alone.”
“Oh,” Ruby declared.
“It’s how it works when you live in a matchmaker’s house,” Ellie explained. “Watch out, Ruby, she’s about to have a serious conversation with you.” She giggled. “And unless I’m mistaken, it has to do with a certain bricklayer named Joseph.” As she walked out of the garden, Ellie called back over her shoulder. “Remember what I said about the laundry, Ruby. Don’t make any hasty decisions.”
Nervously, Ruby looked back at Sara. “You wanted to say something to me that you didn’t want Ellie to hear?”
Sara turned over an empty five-eighths basket and sat on it. She smiled at Ruby. “No need to fret. What I have to tell you isn’t bad news. Ne, not bad at all. You have an offer of marriage. Quickest ever, for me.” She shook her head in disbelief and folded her arms. “So fast and easy that I might not feel right collecting a fee for it.”
Excitement bubbled up inside Ruby. So Joseph really had spoken to Sara, just like he said he was going to. She didn’t know whether to jump with joy or drop to the ground in shock. She’d had offers before, but none she was so eager for. “Joseph?”
Sara rolled her eyes. “Of course, Joseph. What other available man has laid eyes on you since you arrived? Other than Hiram, and he doesn’t count.” She chuckled. “Well, he counts. He’s a sweet enough man under all that laziness, but he’s certainly no match for a young girl like you.”
Ruby shivered with delight. A young girl. The matchmaker had called her a girl. Sara knew she was twenty-five but didn’t consider her over-the-hill. It was probably pride that made her take pleasure in hearing it, but she did. “Joseph really wants to marry me?” she asked, still unable to believe her ears. “He wasn’t joking?”
“Not a joke,” Sara assured her. “And not a match, not yet. There’s much we need to discuss. Your parents made it clear to me that I was not to share your circumstances with any possible prospect. Now that Joseph has made his intentions clear, how do you feel about that? I’ve never counseled a would-be bride to keep such a big secret from her might-be groom.”
She exhaled softly and considered. “I’ve worried about that. But I gave my word to Daddi and Mommi. They didn’t think it would be wise to tell and asked that I not say anything. But that was before—” She chewed hard on her lower lip. “I don’t want to be dishonest with Joseph, but I promised them. I feel as though I have to keep my word. What do you think?”
“I agree that this is unusual, Ruby. Your father explained that he doesn’t want you judged for your circumstances. I don’t often condone misleading a suitor, but I understand your parents’ concern.”
“My father is a wise man. And I know both he and Mommi want what’s best for me.”
