Naomi.”
Somehow, that comment, coming from Betty, was the last straw. Naomi had to speak now,
and quickly, before the rest of her life was set in stone by the family.
“You are all ser kind to give so much thought to my life. But as dearly as I love
my nieces and nephews, I have no wish to raise them. And I will not give up my beehives.
So I think I must find this answer for myself.”
She took advantage of the ensuing silence to move the drowsy child to his father’s
arms. Grabbing a heavy wool shawl from the peg by the back door, she walked out, closing
the door gently behind her.
Mid-November, and it was ser chilly already, a hint of the winter to come. Even the
hardy mums on the sheltered side of the house had succumbed to frost. Clutching the
shawl more tightly, she walked across brittle grass to the gnarled old apple tree
that had once held a tree house when the boys were young. It was a relief to get out
of the kitchen, too warm from all the cooking that had been done today for her birthday.
This day had certainly turned out far different from the celebration her sisters had
so lovingly planned.
She stopped under the tree, resting her hand against therough bark. No point in going farther—she couldn’t escape her family, and she wouldn’t
want to. Soon someone would come out to talk to her, and she would have to explain
and justify and try to make them understand. But for this moment she was alone with
her thoughts.
The family had one thing right. She did have a gift with children, and she couldn’t
deny that gift. But to raise someone else’s children again, to grow to love them so
dearly, but to know that she always took second place in their hearts…no, she couldn’t.
But when she tried to think how to carry out that brave declaration she’d made, she
found she was lacking in ideas.
It was Isaiah who came out to her. Maybe they thought the youngest would be most likely
to soften her heart. But Isaiah was a man grown now, married for just a year, and
so much in love with his Libby. Not a baby any longer, but he still seemed so young
to her with his round blue eyes and his corn-silk hair. The beard he was growing as
a married man was as fine and silky as his hair.
He leaned against the tree next to her, his eyes serious as he studied her face. “Are
you all right?”
Naomi managed a smile, though it probably wasn’t very convincing. “Ja. I will be,
anyway. I guess Daad’s news was a shock.”
“For sure.” Isaiah shook his head. “It wonders me that none of us saw this marriage
coming, but we didn’t. I guess we all figured that if Daad had been going to wed again,
he’d have done it years ago.”
“Then Betty would have had the raising of you.” Her smile was more natural this time.
Isaiah seemed to shudder. “Ach, I’m sure she’s a gut woman. But I’m glad it was you
who brought me up, Naomi.”
For an instant she was surprised almost to tears. “Denke,” she whispered, her throat
tight. She’d never say she loved one more than another, but Isaiah was especially
dear, both because he was the baby and because of his sweet nature.
She tilted her head, watching him, wondering how he would react to the question she
was about to put to him. “What about you, Isaiah? Do you think I’m being selfish not
to do what Daadi wants?”
He blinked, eyes wide and innocent. “Ach, Naomi, everyone knows there’s not a selfish
bone in your body, no matter—” He stopped, looking as if he’d bitten his tongue.
So that was what someone had been saying, once she’d left the kitchen. Well, she wouldn’t
put Isaiah in the middle by noticing.
“I guess the first thing is to find a place for my beehives,” she said, deliberately
turning the subject. “It’s not going to be an easy job, moving them all.”
“I’ll help,” he said instantly. “And I was thinking that I should ask Nathan King
if you could have