Read Online An Amish Family Reunion by Mary Ellis - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Mary Ellis
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couldn’t help laughing at the memory.
“What’s so funny?”
“I just remembered something my
daed
said.” Phoebe faced her new roommate. “Ready to board the
Maid of the Mist
for the boat ride of a lifetime?”
“Sure.” Mary agreed, but she looked petrified. “Mind if I hang onto you sometimes? I don’t know how to swim.” She whispered the words as though keeping a secret from the Glick sisters.
“Hang on all you want,” said Phoebe, while thinking,
Good swimmer or not—if you fall overboard, you’re a goner
.
The four girls rode the elevator down to the lobby with their tour bracelets firmly attached. All had changed into sneakers for easy walking and clutched city maps of Niagara Falls, New York. Phoebe also had her drawing tablet tucked under one arm.
Rebekah noticed it as they boarded the bus. “You can’t take that along today! It’ll get wet on the boat. Didn’t you read about the spray of mist?”
Tiny, red-haired Mary intervened. “We’ll be wearing raincoats. Phoebe’s tablet can stay under that.” Mary held out the picture of blue-clad people for verification.
Rebekah rolled her eyes. “Fine, but don’t say you weren’t warned if it gets soaked.”
On the bus Phoebe and Mary sat together for the short drive to the park entrance. She almost forgot to look for Eli Riehl—almost, but not quite. She spotted his hatless head of blond hair halfway back, noticing that most of the young men had left their hats in their rooms along with their vests. And a few had even pulled their shirts loose from their trousers. And what about Mrs. Stoltzfus? Instead of correcting their wardrobe lapses to comply with the Amish
Ordnung
, she was devouring a caramel apple.
When the bus arrived at the arched walkway into the state park, Mrs. Stoltzfus walked up the aisle to dispense last-minute instructions. “We’ll follow the trail through the gardens and enter the visitor center. Take the steps to the bottom level and go out the back door, and then you’ll go through more gardens to the observation deck. We’ll take the elevator down one hundred seventy-five feet to the river, where we will get on the
Maid of the Mist
.” She peered around over her spectacles. “I want you to stay together until we’re all on board. Afterward, you’re on your own. You can watch the movie in the visitor center, walk the trails upriver, or board the trolley to either the aquarium or Goat Island to see Horseshoe Falls and Cave of the Winds. You have maps showing where everything is. If you lose your map, there are more available at each attraction. If you lose your bracelet, I think you
know
what you’ll be doing. And don’t forget the name of the hotel we’re staying at.”
Phoebe shivered, pressing her bracelet into her skin. This chaperone didn’t act anywhere near this scary in Holmes County.
Mrs. Stoltzfus smiled now at the sea of faces, mostly eager and a few terrified. “Just meet here under this arch by six o’clock to catch the bus back to our hotel for dinner.” She punctuated the word
here
with a stomp of her left foot. “That’ll give you more than four hours to sightsee. But don’t worry. We still have all day tomorrow to catch anything you miss today. Okay, let’s go!” Without waiting for possible questions, Mrs. S. went down the bus steps.
Phoebe and Mary exchanged a laugh and quickly fell in stride with the others. As they wound their way to the boat dock, the crowd made it difficult for the group to stay together. Fortunately, their Plain clothing made it easy to find one another. Phoebe didn’t know where to gaze first—the Niagara River, the flower gardens and interpretive displays, or the tourists from all over the world. Because everyone dressed in their own native costumes and talked in foreign tongues, no one looked twice at an Amish group chattering in Pennsylvania
Deutsch
. As Phoebe followed the person in front of her, sheeplike, her head swung from left to right like
“What’s so funny?”
“I just remembered something my
daed
said.” Phoebe faced her new roommate. “Ready to board the
Maid of the Mist
for the boat ride of a lifetime?”
“Sure.” Mary agreed, but she looked petrified. “Mind if I hang onto you sometimes? I don’t know how to swim.” She whispered the words as though keeping a secret from the Glick sisters.
“Hang on all you want,” said Phoebe, while thinking,
Good swimmer or not—if you fall overboard, you’re a goner
.
The four girls rode the elevator down to the lobby with their tour bracelets firmly attached. All had changed into sneakers for easy walking and clutched city maps of Niagara Falls, New York. Phoebe also had her drawing tablet tucked under one arm.
Rebekah noticed it as they boarded the bus. “You can’t take that along today! It’ll get wet on the boat. Didn’t you read about the spray of mist?”
Tiny, red-haired Mary intervened. “We’ll be wearing raincoats. Phoebe’s tablet can stay under that.” Mary held out the picture of blue-clad people for verification.
Rebekah rolled her eyes. “Fine, but don’t say you weren’t warned if it gets soaked.”
On the bus Phoebe and Mary sat together for the short drive to the park entrance. She almost forgot to look for Eli Riehl—almost, but not quite. She spotted his hatless head of blond hair halfway back, noticing that most of the young men had left their hats in their rooms along with their vests. And a few had even pulled their shirts loose from their trousers. And what about Mrs. Stoltzfus? Instead of correcting their wardrobe lapses to comply with the Amish
Ordnung
, she was devouring a caramel apple.
When the bus arrived at the arched walkway into the state park, Mrs. Stoltzfus walked up the aisle to dispense last-minute instructions. “We’ll follow the trail through the gardens and enter the visitor center. Take the steps to the bottom level and go out the back door, and then you’ll go through more gardens to the observation deck. We’ll take the elevator down one hundred seventy-five feet to the river, where we will get on the
Maid of the Mist
.” She peered around over her spectacles. “I want you to stay together until we’re all on board. Afterward, you’re on your own. You can watch the movie in the visitor center, walk the trails upriver, or board the trolley to either the aquarium or Goat Island to see Horseshoe Falls and Cave of the Winds. You have maps showing where everything is. If you lose your map, there are more available at each attraction. If you lose your bracelet, I think you
know
what you’ll be doing. And don’t forget the name of the hotel we’re staying at.”
Phoebe shivered, pressing her bracelet into her skin. This chaperone didn’t act anywhere near this scary in Holmes County.
Mrs. Stoltzfus smiled now at the sea of faces, mostly eager and a few terrified. “Just meet here under this arch by six o’clock to catch the bus back to our hotel for dinner.” She punctuated the word
here
with a stomp of her left foot. “That’ll give you more than four hours to sightsee. But don’t worry. We still have all day tomorrow to catch anything you miss today. Okay, let’s go!” Without waiting for possible questions, Mrs. S. went down the bus steps.
Phoebe and Mary exchanged a laugh and quickly fell in stride with the others. As they wound their way to the boat dock, the crowd made it difficult for the group to stay together. Fortunately, their Plain clothing made it easy to find one another. Phoebe didn’t know where to gaze first—the Niagara River, the flower gardens and interpretive displays, or the tourists from all over the world. Because everyone dressed in their own native costumes and talked in foreign tongues, no one looked twice at an Amish group chattering in Pennsylvania
Deutsch
. As Phoebe followed the person in front of her, sheeplike, her head swung from left to right like
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