Read Online The Promise Box by Tricia Goyer - Free Book Online Page A

snuggled into bed already when I came in.” Dat’s emotions sat heavy in his
     throat. “I heard something outside and hoped it wasn’t deer because I hadn’t fixed
     the fence ‘round the garden yet.”
    “Was it deer?”
    “
Ne
, jest the neighbor’s dog.”
    Lydia nodded.
    “And she asked about the beans.”
    “The beans?”
    “
Ja
, the beans in the garden. There was a frost coming, and she was worried about them.
     I told her not to fret, that I’d already covered them in plastic.”
    She had to check on Mem’s garden tomorrow. Mem had been a wonderful gardener during
     Lydia’s growing-up years, but her plot had shrunk over time as it became harder for
     her to tend to it.
    “Oh.” Dat sat up straighter and ran his free hand down his beard. “And she had a note
     for me. Something to put in the Promise Box.”
    Promise Box
. The words sent a tingling sensation down her spine, and she straightened in her
     chair. “The Promise Box?”
    Dat’s eyes brightened. “
Ja
.” He slowly placed his fork on the table. “I thought about telling you about it last
     night, but, well, we both needed quiet, time to grieve.”
    “Okay, but what is it?”
    He stood and offered the softest hint of a smile. “It’s something I’ve been wanting
     to tell you about for a while.”
    “Tell me about?”
    “It was yer mem’s most special treasure.”
    “How come I didn’t know, then?” None of the things her mother had owned were worth
     anything. They were just ordinary household items. None were special. Unless her mem
     had been hiding something. But why would an Amish woman do that? To live a Plain and
     simple life was all her mem knew.
    “What could she have that would be considered valuable?”
    Dat took slow steps toward their bedroom. “It was a gift fer you,” he called. “She
     had a plan yet to give it to you fer your birthday this year.”
    Warmth filled Lydia’s chest. She wanted to see it but was almost afraid to. What did
     that mean—
Promise Box
?
    In less than a minute he returned. In his hands was a simple wooden box. Lydia thought
     she’d seen it a few times—sitting on the table next to Mem’s Bible or on top of her
     nightstand.
    That is the treasure?
    He handed it to her and she took it. The wood was smooth but aged as if it had been
     held in her mother’s hands a thousand times.
    “Did you make the box?”
    Dat nodded. “
Ja
, years ago. For our first anniversary, I think. Ada Mae used to use it to keep stamps
     and change until she found a better use.”
    “Then what did she use it for?”
    He shrugged. “You’ll have to find out. Open it…but not here. Later. Give yourself
     time. You’ll want quiet. You’ll want to…” He smiled. “I don’t need to tell ya everything.
     Jest make it special.”
    Lydia spread the old quilt under the tall larch tree and settled under a swath of
     sunshine that had managed to slip through the branches. She curled her legs to the
     side and tucked her long skirt under her. The breeze was warm. In the distance, Blue
     whinnied in the pasture. Lydia was only slightly disappointed that she didn’t see
     Gideon in the field with the horse. Although she would have liked to see him, she
     mostly wanted to be alone. To discover what was inside the box.
    Lydia opened the lid, and her brow furrowed. She’d expected it to have keepsakes,
     but instead folded pieces of paper were tucked inside. She opened one. A Scripture
     verse.
    “
Lo, I am with you alway, Matthew 28:20
,” was written in Mem’s neat script. There was nothing else.
    Is this what Mem thought was so special?
    Lydia sifted through the papers. Most of them had dates. One of them was thicker,
     as if it were a few pieces of paper folded together. A tremble moved up her arms,
     through her chest, and settled in the pit of her stomach. The date on the outside:
     almost exactly two months after she was born. What secret was tucked inside?
    Baby girl, I’ve been praying for