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Authors: Vannetta Chapman
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couldn’t have outweighed her by much. He was still a boy really. “Why don’t your parents take your bruder to the hospital?”
“My dat doesn’t think things are so bad yet, but my mamm — she’s real worried. She sent me here to ask you to come, and Dat agreed it would be okay.”
“If you don’t want to go to the Englisch , Samuel should be the one to look at your bruder .” Adam plunged his hands into his pockets, obviously unhappy with the boy’s explanation.
But Joshua only resumed staring at the floor’s smooth boards.
“Joshua?” Annie waited until he looked up, until his blue eyes looked directly into hers. “Tell me why your parents didn’t send you to Samuel’s.”
He licked his lips, but didn’t hesitate with the truth, didn’t look away from her. “I can’t say for sure, but I suspect it’s because they weren’t able to pay him anything the last time or the time before that either.”
“Samuel doesn’t require payment for his services,” Adam insisted.
“Doesn’t matter though, does it?” Joshua looked from one to the other now. “He might not require it, but most folks give something. Even a child could see it’s the way things are done. My dat —he won’t be going back until he can pay what he owes, and that won’t be until spring.”
He sank onto the couch, ran his hands through his hair. “They argued about it yesterday, and again tonight. My mamm , she heard from the ladies in town that you had some medical training.”
Annie looked at her mother.
“Probably true. I mentioned in town that you were helping with your dat .”
“We hoped maybe you could do something, or at least talk some sense into my dat .”
Annie turned, headed upstairs.
“Where are you going?” Adam asked, his voice a low rumble.
“To change. I can’t go with Joshua like this.”
Adam shook his head in disapproval, but didn’t bother arguing with her. “You’re not going with Joshua at all. Their place is more than ten miles away, toward the northwest edge of our district. I’ll be taking you.”
“I’ll find extra blankets for you both.”
“Should I wait for you or go on ahead?” Joshua asked.
“At this hour? I want you to wait. We’re safer traveling together. The last thing we need is another buggy accident.” Adam shrugged into his coat and headed to the barn.
Annie had changed and was on her way out the door when her mother stopped her.
“Take this,” Rebekah said, pushing a quilted bag into Annie’s hands.
“What is it?”
“A few supplies—some aspirin, Tylenol, bandages, a thermometer, and the supplies you keep beside your dat’s bed.” She tucked a stray curl into Annie’s kapp . “The Hooley family is hard-working though a bit poor, and as Joshua mentioned they are somewhat proud. That child might need some of the items in here.”
Annie nodded, slipped the bag under her coat, and kissed her mamm’s cheek. “I feel like Florence Nightingale.”
“You’re a gut dochdern , and it’s a fine thing you’re doing. Just be careful.”
“If I’m a good daughter, it’s because of the way you raised me, and of course I’ll be careful. There’s no need to worry. Adam will be with me, remember?”
The cold wind slapped at her when she stepped out into the wintry night.
As they rode in the buggy toward the Hooley house, Annie prayed for wisdom.
She knew her own knowledge was quite limited. She wasn’t a doctor. She was a skilled nursing practitioner, more than capable of carrying out a doctor’s orders.
The problem was there was no doctor here to assess the situation, and she was breaking several laws if she were to even attempt to diagnose this child.
But she’d be breaking moral laws to leave a child ill in the night if she could help him.
So as they moved through the snow and cold, she prayed, and tried to remember everything she could about high fevers—but she couldn’t help wishing Samuel would be there with
“My dat doesn’t think things are so bad yet, but my mamm — she’s real worried. She sent me here to ask you to come, and Dat agreed it would be okay.”
“If you don’t want to go to the Englisch , Samuel should be the one to look at your bruder .” Adam plunged his hands into his pockets, obviously unhappy with the boy’s explanation.
But Joshua only resumed staring at the floor’s smooth boards.
“Joshua?” Annie waited until he looked up, until his blue eyes looked directly into hers. “Tell me why your parents didn’t send you to Samuel’s.”
He licked his lips, but didn’t hesitate with the truth, didn’t look away from her. “I can’t say for sure, but I suspect it’s because they weren’t able to pay him anything the last time or the time before that either.”
“Samuel doesn’t require payment for his services,” Adam insisted.
“Doesn’t matter though, does it?” Joshua looked from one to the other now. “He might not require it, but most folks give something. Even a child could see it’s the way things are done. My dat —he won’t be going back until he can pay what he owes, and that won’t be until spring.”
He sank onto the couch, ran his hands through his hair. “They argued about it yesterday, and again tonight. My mamm , she heard from the ladies in town that you had some medical training.”
Annie looked at her mother.
“Probably true. I mentioned in town that you were helping with your dat .”
“We hoped maybe you could do something, or at least talk some sense into my dat .”
Annie turned, headed upstairs.
“Where are you going?” Adam asked, his voice a low rumble.
“To change. I can’t go with Joshua like this.”
Adam shook his head in disapproval, but didn’t bother arguing with her. “You’re not going with Joshua at all. Their place is more than ten miles away, toward the northwest edge of our district. I’ll be taking you.”
“I’ll find extra blankets for you both.”
“Should I wait for you or go on ahead?” Joshua asked.
“At this hour? I want you to wait. We’re safer traveling together. The last thing we need is another buggy accident.” Adam shrugged into his coat and headed to the barn.
Annie had changed and was on her way out the door when her mother stopped her.
“Take this,” Rebekah said, pushing a quilted bag into Annie’s hands.
“What is it?”
“A few supplies—some aspirin, Tylenol, bandages, a thermometer, and the supplies you keep beside your dat’s bed.” She tucked a stray curl into Annie’s kapp . “The Hooley family is hard-working though a bit poor, and as Joshua mentioned they are somewhat proud. That child might need some of the items in here.”
Annie nodded, slipped the bag under her coat, and kissed her mamm’s cheek. “I feel like Florence Nightingale.”
“You’re a gut dochdern , and it’s a fine thing you’re doing. Just be careful.”
“If I’m a good daughter, it’s because of the way you raised me, and of course I’ll be careful. There’s no need to worry. Adam will be with me, remember?”
The cold wind slapped at her when she stepped out into the wintry night.
As they rode in the buggy toward the Hooley house, Annie prayed for wisdom.
She knew her own knowledge was quite limited. She wasn’t a doctor. She was a skilled nursing practitioner, more than capable of carrying out a doctor’s orders.
The problem was there was no doctor here to assess the situation, and she was breaking several laws if she were to even attempt to diagnose this child.
But she’d be breaking moral laws to leave a child ill in the night if she could help him.
So as they moved through the snow and cold, she prayed, and tried to remember everything she could about high fevers—but she couldn’t help wishing Samuel would be there with
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