Read Online Amish Christmas Joy by Patricia Davids - Free Book Online Page B

driving fast cars.
    What had his life been like? And why did it matter? If only she could quell her curiosity about him. As they kept walking, she tried, but it seemed that she couldn’t give up the need to know more. She finally blurted out, “What kind of work do you do in Texas?”
    He seemed surprised by her question. She was a little surprised herself at her boldness.
    “I’m a roughneck. I work on oil rigs, mostly off-shore rigs. The pay is better.”
    “Out in the ocean?” Her secret dream had always been to travel. To see the mountains and the oceans, to view and admire God’s handiwork beyond the hills and fields of her small community.
    “Yes, out in the ocean or rather in the Gulf of Mexico.”
    “Was it wonderful? Was it frightening?”
    “Mostly it was noisy, hard work for very long hours. At times, it could be too beautiful for words. Then again, during some bad storms, I only wanted to get my feet back on dry land.”
    “To look upon the ocean must be a wondrous thing.” She couldn’t help the longing that slipped into her tone.
    “You should go.”
    She looked down. “I have no reason for such a journey.”
    “Travel isn’t forbidden. Many Amish visit the seashore.”
    “I couldn’t go alone, and I don’t know of anyone who would go with me.” Outside of her friend Levi Beachy, she hadn’t spoken to anyone who wished to see more of the world the way she did. Levi had planned to move to an Amish settlement in Colorado, but then he had married her friend Sarah and they were both happy to remain in Hope Springs now.
    “Don’t some of the older couples around here travel to Florida for the winter? I’ve heard it’s a popular destination for Amish snowbirds.”
    “Some do. Not many.”
    “If the chance comes up, you should go along.”
    “I teach school through the winter, so that won’t work.”
    “I guess not, but you won’t always be teaching.”
    “True. Someday I’ll be too old to keep up with the children.”
    “The ocean will still be there for you.”
    She hadn’t expected him to be understanding and sympathetic. Under other circumstances, he was the kind of man she could like.
    * * *
     
    Caleb was sorry when they arrived at the school. For a while, he had forgotten that he didn’t belong here. Leah was responsible for that. He wanted to ask if she had found forgiveness in her heart for him, but he knew it didn’t matter. He would leave again anyway.
    She went ahead of him up the steps. He and Joy followed her into the school building. Immediately, the smells and the sight of the interior filled him with nostalgia. Nothing had changed in the years he’d been gone.
    The floor was the same wide planking, scuffed but clean. Light poured in from the large windows along both sides of the single room. A blackboard covered two thirds of the front wall. Above it, student artwork was still displayed. The childish drawings were much the same, even if they had been done by different hands.
    Squarely in the middle of the front sat a large stove. It could burn wood or coal, depending on how much heat the building needed. Slightly off to one side was Leah’s desk. Books and stacks of papers were arranged neatly on the shelves behind it. Old-fashioned wooden student desks were arranged in four rows, two on either side of a wide center aisle.
    He could remember hiding behind the open lid of his desk near the back and sharing a laugh with his friends. The teacher would eventually come by and silence their conversation with a pointed look. Lidia Yoder had been a stern but fair teacher who had no trouble quelling the occasional rowdy student.
    “What happened to Lidia Yoder? Is she still around?”
    “She lives in a little house in Hope Springs. You should go see her.”
    “I might do that.”
    He tried to remember where Leah sat in the old days, but he couldn’t recall. He hadn’t had his eye on girls at that stage of his life. Mostly, he’d wanted to be out playing Duck, Duck,