quality and flavor."
Mamma continued where Dat left off. "Bruised apples, ones that fall from the trees, don't usually end up in apple-
74 76h e k_, o t
int
|i'- , yfl know. They're turned into cider."
I ullc frowned for a moment, her eyes blinking to beat the
hiiiI. But she said nothing. It was Hannah who caught the
Ilillt1 message, and when she did, her head was bobbing up
nil iluwn, though she said not a word.
I Mint Lizzie must've sensed the tension and remarked that
I' i' tipples used for cider could have a right sweet taste if
|<
I I'lit nt her.
I I ''iih understood what Lizzie was trying to say. In spite of
in I mm trees and bumps from the hard ground, your spirit
I i! Itnd been true and sweet to begin with could be
|< i uiiied in time and with the right kind of care.
I Mini' \-Yi2i& seemed to know what she was talking about,
in' 11 whs the thing most puzzling to Leah. Gathering up the
i
li' plnr.es and utensils for Mamma, she thought sometime it liuM he nice to know something of Lizzie Brenneman's own |iH .( lipringe, back when. Of course she wouldn't think of luiiniH right out and asking; that wasn't something you did
In < >u| of the bine, not if you were as polite as Leah felt she
li 'i|;ill, it would be nice to know.
I 11 wns midafternoon, and Sadie, stretched out on the bed, I'l up from an hour-long nap. How nice to have this It11 it ti to relax before Mamma and the girls returned from
I1 Hire. Leah, she knew, was out puttering in the barn or li i"illing shed two of her favorite places to be, though tlli' never could understand Leah's unending attraction to H niil-of-doors.
I Sit f irig on the edge of the bed, she yawned drowsily. She
75 77
-In J2e
regretted having told Leah about Derry. She'd made a huge mistake in doing so and she knew it. She and Derry . . . well, their relationship was much too precious to be shared with a girl who had no idea what love was, probably, except for a smidgen of puppy love years ago. She recalled Leah's youthful account of an autumn walk with Cousin Fannie's oldest son.
"Jonas says he wants to marry me someday," Leah had said with smiling eyes.
"Marry you?" Sadie had to snicker.
"I know, sounds silly. . . ."
"Sure does," and here she'd eyed Leah for a meddlesome moment. "You, at the ripe old age often, are secretly engaged to Jonas Mast?"
Leah had grinned at that, her face blushing shades of pink. "Jah, guess I am."
"You actually said you'd marry him?"
"I can't imagine loving any other boy this side of heaven," Leah had declared, her big hazel-gold eyes lighting up yet again at the mention of the Mast boy.
"Puh!" Sadie had exploded. But now she could certainly understand such romantic feeling. Back then she'd laughed out loud more than once at Leah's immaturity, so green her sister was! How could you possibly know who you wanted to spend the rest of your life with when you weren't even a woman yet? Such a big difference there was between herself and her spunky younger sister. There was not much, if anything, that could prompt Leah to ever think of straying from the fold.
Outside, she found Leah in the tidy little garden shed close to where the martin birdhouse stood ever so high, next to Mamma's bed of pink and purple petunias and blue
76 78
o a e na nt
^fchwlur'n buttons. Near the tallest maple in the yard, where
H^I'lie tiro bench wrapped its white grape-and-vine motif
Hii<>:| thr hnse of the trunk. "Hullo," she called as she
H| tchnl t he entrance so as not to startle her sister. She
hi hi'l risk getting off on the wrong foot for this conversa-
Hr''
Hi i . till I timed only slightly, her fingers deep in potting soil.
Htajto luivo a gut nap?"
^^^Hlc nodded, bleary-eyed.
^^^whul brings you out here?"
^^^Hlr Housed a chuckle in Leah's voice. "Just thought we
^^^ghiit, maybe. That's all," she
Mamma continued where Dat left off. "Bruised apples, ones that fall from the trees, don't usually end up in apple-
74 76h e k_, o t
int
|i'- , yfl know. They're turned into cider."
I ullc frowned for a moment, her eyes blinking to beat the
hiiiI. But she said nothing. It was Hannah who caught the
Ilillt1 message, and when she did, her head was bobbing up
nil iluwn, though she said not a word.
I Mint Lizzie must've sensed the tension and remarked that
I' i' tipples used for cider could have a right sweet taste if
|<
I I'lit nt her.
I I ''iih understood what Lizzie was trying to say. In spite of
in I mm trees and bumps from the hard ground, your spirit
I i! Itnd been true and sweet to begin with could be
|< i uiiied in time and with the right kind of care.
I Mini' \-Yi2i& seemed to know what she was talking about,
in' 11 whs the thing most puzzling to Leah. Gathering up the
i
li' plnr.es and utensils for Mamma, she thought sometime it liuM he nice to know something of Lizzie Brenneman's own |iH .( lipringe, back when. Of course she wouldn't think of luiiniH right out and asking; that wasn't something you did
In < >u| of the bine, not if you were as polite as Leah felt she
li 'i|;ill, it would be nice to know.
I 11 wns midafternoon, and Sadie, stretched out on the bed, I'l up from an hour-long nap. How nice to have this It11 it ti to relax before Mamma and the girls returned from
I1 Hire. Leah, she knew, was out puttering in the barn or li i"illing shed two of her favorite places to be, though tlli' never could understand Leah's unending attraction to H niil-of-doors.
I Sit f irig on the edge of the bed, she yawned drowsily. She
75 77
-In J2e
regretted having told Leah about Derry. She'd made a huge mistake in doing so and she knew it. She and Derry . . . well, their relationship was much too precious to be shared with a girl who had no idea what love was, probably, except for a smidgen of puppy love years ago. She recalled Leah's youthful account of an autumn walk with Cousin Fannie's oldest son.
"Jonas says he wants to marry me someday," Leah had said with smiling eyes.
"Marry you?" Sadie had to snicker.
"I know, sounds silly. . . ."
"Sure does," and here she'd eyed Leah for a meddlesome moment. "You, at the ripe old age often, are secretly engaged to Jonas Mast?"
Leah had grinned at that, her face blushing shades of pink. "Jah, guess I am."
"You actually said you'd marry him?"
"I can't imagine loving any other boy this side of heaven," Leah had declared, her big hazel-gold eyes lighting up yet again at the mention of the Mast boy.
"Puh!" Sadie had exploded. But now she could certainly understand such romantic feeling. Back then she'd laughed out loud more than once at Leah's immaturity, so green her sister was! How could you possibly know who you wanted to spend the rest of your life with when you weren't even a woman yet? Such a big difference there was between herself and her spunky younger sister. There was not much, if anything, that could prompt Leah to ever think of straying from the fold.
Outside, she found Leah in the tidy little garden shed close to where the martin birdhouse stood ever so high, next to Mamma's bed of pink and purple petunias and blue
76 78
o a e na nt
^fchwlur'n buttons. Near the tallest maple in the yard, where
H^I'lie tiro bench wrapped its white grape-and-vine motif
Hii<>:| thr hnse of the trunk. "Hullo," she called as she
H| tchnl t he entrance so as not to startle her sister. She
hi hi'l risk getting off on the wrong foot for this conversa-
Hr''
Hi i . till I timed only slightly, her fingers deep in potting soil.
Htajto luivo a gut nap?"
^^^Hlc nodded, bleary-eyed.
^^^whul brings you out here?"
^^^Hlr Housed a chuckle in Leah's voice. "Just thought we
^^^ghiit, maybe. That's all," she
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