Merry Christmas To One and All

The Overly Friendly Holiday Mouse T'was a cold winter's night close to Christmas when we Risners nestled down in our recliners. Harold watching television, and me stitching on my Grandmother's Fan quilt spread in hills and valleys on my lap and cascading over my feet to the floor. Mid evening the quiet was broken when Harold spotted a mouse flash from the dining room into the living room. The furry speed demon ducked under the couch but not for long. For half an hour, Harold insisted on giving me a play by play of the mouse's marathon as he crisscrossed the room, looking for a suitable nest for the long winter night. On the mouse's next sprint, Harold announced the four legged racer dashed under the couch. After that nothing but silence which meant Harold didn't see the mouse anymore or was interested in television or he dozed off. I concentrated on my stitches. It was the dark movement on the quilt above my knee that made me glanced up. The MOUSE peeked over the bunched quilt at me. His beady, glittering, tiny eyes stared into my startled, wide eyes. My thought was now was when Harold should have given me a mouse alert. Remember me. I'm the one that didn't make a sound as the rat, AKA Sweet Potato Thief, propelled himself toward the live trap door, busted the door and catapulted to the basement floor. Mice have the opposite affect on me, especially one in my lap. I screamed at the top of my lungs. The mouse took my not too subtle hint and in the wink of an eye scampered over my feet and down the quilt. Now I had Harold's attention. His recliner came up with a clatter. “Are you having a heart attack?” I shot out of my recliner and frantically shook the quilt while I watched around my feet. “I don't know. I might be. Let me take my pulse, and I'll get back to you on that. The mouse was in my lap, walking all over my quilt with his dirty feet and staring at me.” “I didn't see him,” Harold said as if this was no big deal. “Of course not. You had to be awake to see him. Next time I will shoo him your direction so he can sit in your lap,” I offered. The rest of the evening as I kept a watchful eye, I made sure my quilt was piled high in my lap instead of dragging on the floor. As I quilted my problem solving skills began forming in my mind. Obviously, I didn't have enough sticky traps statically placed. I'd buy more. For a few minutes, I contemplated placing the traps all around my recliner for protection from lap mice. Maybe I could make a small sign with an arrow on it, pointing to Harold's recliner, signifying that way to the mouse's next race track. Nah, extra sticky traps were a bad idea! No way would that work. I'd be the one to get stuck in the sticky traps. Besides, I was hoping that mouse wasn't dumb enough to try scaling Mount Quilt again after the reception I gave him. So I did what I thought was the logical thing by surrounding the couch with sticky traps and hoped we didn't have company. UPDATE: I'm happy to announce in this house not a creature is stirring except the two large ones in their recliners wishing all of you Merry Christmas and a Happy, Healthy, Varmint Free 2019.

Seventy Year Old Dresden Plate Quilt Top

Finished a special project. This was a quilt top made by Harold's Aunt Gladys in Arkansas years ago. She put it together when she was first married from the better pieces of clothing in the rag box when every scrap of material was saved for use. Gladys sewed the print pieces on her treadle sewing machine and the white pieces were from feed sack muslin - cut and sewed by hand to fit around the circle called the Dresden Plate. This might have been when Uncle Elmer was in the Korean War fighting with the marines. Gladys was a young bride in her early twenties, milking close to a dozen cows by hand twice a day. I can imagine her on lonely nights sitting under a single light bulb that hung down from the ceiling working to piece this quilt and many others while she worried and waited for her husband to come back from the war. I quilted the top to the back and know the 70 or plus year old quilt to be fragile. Even covered up a couple of mouse holes with some of my own scraps. So this quilt will never be used but will be on display in my living room as soon as I find a quilt rack. So knowing the hard work and sacrifices women make in time of war I felt that Aunt Gladys deserves the credit for this quilt. On the back is her name and the year 1950 which is just a guess to date the quilt. Thank you for your service Elmer Powell and Thank you Aunt Gladys for your strength to keep the home fires burning for two long years.

A bit of history on the Grandmother’s Fan quilt: This pattern first appeared in print in a Ladies Art Company catalog of 1897. Prior to that, fans were common motifs in late nineteenth century crazy quilts. Their popularity likely was due to the fad for decorating in the Japanese style, which was prompted by Americans' exposure to Japanese art at the 1876 Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia. By the 1930s, fans were standard favorites for quilt patterns which is understandable. The fan is made from scraps left over from making clothes or less faded pieces cut out of clothes in the rag box before the rest of the garment was turned into dish clothes and dust rags. The 1930s quilts patterns quilting came about during the depression when with brilliant thrift the women used to create useful, beautiful quilts from what they had.  Many of us have seen these quilts on our elderly relatives beds. The Great Depression of the 1930s was the longest and most severe economic crisis in American history. It impacted jobs, standards of living, well-being and many areas of American popular culture. It also created a sense of connectedness among those who experienced the period. Passed on orally in many families, the experience of life in hard times has become part of the common heritage of millions of Americans.

This is my version of the Fan quilt. The piece in the middle is a dresser scarf much older than the quilt top. I got two of these dresser scarves at a yard sale and realized they were some elderly woman's treasures. They had been stored in an wooden dresser and had the distinctive scent of oak permeating through them. The material was muslin from a feed sack or flour sack. In the scarves beginnings they had been used and washed often. I knew this because some of the embroidery thread had washed away. It was amazing to see the pattern still imprinted on the material. I replaced pieces of roses and leaves. The crocheted border was still as neat as the day the woman finished crocheting it. In the beginning of the fan quilt, a fan design was quilted in the white piece of the block. I got my pattern from an old quilting magazine given to me by my aunt. With that pattern was a quilting design of a rose with two leaves. I am planning on using that design so that it matches the roses on the scarf. If all goes well the finished quilt will be my entry at the fair next year.

Stealers of Our Children Need to Be Caught

Please keep an eye out for this young lady at the gas stations around you. She has been kidnapped and missing for two weeks from Brooklyn Iowa. She was last seen last week in a car headed south from Carney, Mo. north of Kansas City. In small towns in the midwest where everyone knows everyone else people feel safe to go jogging alone or not to lock the doors after dark. Mollie was taken in the night. There seems to be a pattern of missing kids in this area. Two months ago a young man was taken near Laport City, Iowa. No clue to where he is. Six years ago there were two young girls, cousins, riding their bikes in July and they were taken. Six months later their bodies was found in a wooded reserve. Over the years I have heard reports of a white van cruising near kids and trying to get their attention. Don't know if it is the same devious people or not, but please watch for Mollie and call the police.

Scammer Alert

I received this email this morning. Usually if I don't know the name of the sender I click it scam and go on but the fact that this person was using an old password of mine from eight years ago made me curious. What I found in the message is a person that is not me. I have nothing to hide and would never do the things this person claims. She may have watched these videos herself and is using them blackmail others. Am I sending her money if it is a her? No!! I'm assuming I have enough of a following on all my blog accounts to alert others not to fall for such a scheme as this. fayrisner - blue08pen From Marlee ArtusoAdd contact To fayrisner@netins.netAdd contact Date Today 2:36 pm Contact photo Message Body Lets get directly to the purpose. No person has compensated me to check you. You may not know me and you are probably thinking why you are getting this email? In fact, I placed a software on the X video clips (pornography) site and you know what, you visited this web site to have fun (you know what I mean). While you were viewing video clips, your browser started working as a Remote control Desktop having a key logger which provided me access to your screen as well as web cam. Immediately after that, my software program collected all your contacts from your Messenger, Facebook, as well as emailaccount. Next I created a video. 1st part shows the video you were watching (you've got a fine taste haha), and second part shows the recording of your web camera, and its u. You get not one but two choices. We are going to read up on these types of solutions in details: Very first option is to neglect this email message. In this instance, I will send out your video clip to all of your contacts and just think about the embarrassment you will see. Moreover if you are in a relationship, just how it will eventually affect? Other solution would be to compensate me $1000. Let us name it as a donation. As a consequence, I most certainly will immediately eliminate your video. You could go forward daily life like this never took place and you surely will never hear back again from me. You will make the payment through Bitcoin (if you don't know this, search for "how to buy bitcoin" in Google search engine). BTC Address to send to: 1EJRxdwGTUtu32d6GqxttFCD5xuyK71Sek [CASE-sensitive so copy & paste it] In case you are planning on going to the police, very well, this mail cannot be traced back to me. I have taken care of my moves. I am just not looking to charge a fee very much, I wish to be paid for. You have one day in order to make the payment. I have a specific pixel in this email message, and at this moment I know that you have read this email message. If I do not receive the BitCoins, I will, no doubt send your video recording to all of your contacts including relatives, co-workers, and many others. Nevertheless, if I receive the payment, I will erase the recording immediately. If you want evidence, reply Yeah then I definitely will send out your video recording to your 13 friends. It's a non:negotiable offer that being said don't waste my personal time & yours by responding to this message.

Replica of Grandma's Crazy Quilt Quilt put together and quilted in the Spring of 2018 Webster's defines a crazy quilt as a patchwork quilt with no regular design, and as I like to repeat every quilt has its own story. Crazy Quilting and it’s “Recycled” History The centuries old history of the crazy quilt intrigues me as well. They were started by those less fortunate, by patching blankets, clothing, etc with scraps of fabrics and other clothing. Later, quilts and garments were made using elegant fabrics such as velvets and silks and embellishments of lace, beads, ribbons were added. Crazy quilts can be anything you want them to be. Have you ever thought about the colors of Amish quilts - blue, purple and black blocks? Now many quilts in those colors are made out of new material to sell to tourists. Back in the Amish Communities beginning, their quilts were made from the less faded and worn pieces of their discarded clothing for their own use just like the homesteaders or women living in cities. To this day, I imagine that is still an Amish custom to use pieces of discarded clothing for quilts for home use that the tourists never see, but now with relaxed color schemes, the Amish quilts may be in yellow, greens, purples and blues. I once saw my great great grandmother, Alvina Bright's crazy quilt from 1899. In each twelve inch square backing, she had used a piece she embroidered the simple outline of an animal. Around that she laid the scraps she'd save. Some of the silk pieces had disintegrated after a hundred years, but the quilt still held many memories of an experienced quilter who made the whole quilt by hand. The quilt had to be one of the last quilts Alvina made before she went blind, and made that particular quilt precious to her and her family. I was inspired to try my hand at a quilt like hers, embroidering free hand stitched animals in the blocks to duplicate my great great grandmother's quilt. I still use that quilt today in winter to keep us warm. To make a crazy quilt really special, add pieces of memorabilia such as lace from your grandmother’s doilies, or pieces of vintage linens that may have a stain that makes them unusable by cutting the stain off. Crazy quilts from the Victorian era are adorned with beads, fine threads, trims, lace, velvet, pearl or gold coated buttons. These quilts were found in homes of the wealthy and maybe used more often for a bedspread because of its ornate design. The quilt I gift to you is only a replica of crazy quilts from our great grandmother's day. I embroidered over the yellow-orange roses and leaves to give the quilt an aged flair. The laces was left over from years ago when I sewed Barbie doll clothes to sell at craft shows. The butterfly blocks were added simply because I love butterflies, which to me, compliments the yellow-orange roses on the quilt. There's another reason this crazy quilt is special. I decided I'd like to enter it in the Benton County Fair's Open Class division in Vinton, Iowa the last of June 2018. I believe we should try something new to us once in awhile, but having thought that, it took me a year and a half to get up my courage. This crazy quilt is the one I decided to take out of three that I had made that winter. Three days later I went back to get my quilt and found I had been given a third place ribbon. Also, the manager of that portion of the Open Division said I should keep the quilt show in mind for next year. What a thrill the whole experience was. So now this quilt is yours, because to me, you are a winner!

Here it is – Book 11 of the Nurse Hal Among The Amish series. Available in a couple days on Amazon, Kindle, Barnes and Noble and Smashwords.com. For the month of July this book and ebook as well as all of by other books and ebooks will be on sale at Smashwords.com for half price. Give my selections a look through and see if any of them interest you while the price is right. Bender Creek Bridge's Troubled Waters synopsis The longest year of Joy Petermeyer's life is just about over. Nurse Hal's stepson, Daniel Lapp, is due back from Tennessee in August, and they planned to get married. Only according to his Aunt Ida's letters, Daniel is having a good time in Tennessee working with his Uncle Marvin's horses and dating an Amish girl named Arlene. Joy worries that Daniel isn't coming home, and decides she has to move on. Her only friend is Melinda Esch. One night, they go on a camping trip which ends up tragically. Joy is determined to never have anything to do with Melinda after that night. Just when she considered her life was in bad shape, Daniel's friend, Jimmie Miller invites Joy to step out with him to the teen singings. Joy is welcomed back by the Amish teens after months of avoiding the singings. That date with Jimmie leads to a picnic and horseback riding dates. Summer is fun again, and Joy realizes she has developed deep feelings for Jimmie. To Joy's surprise, not even her romance with Jimmie goes well. Samuel Nisely, Jimmie's stepfather, tells Joy to stay away from Jimmie as long as she is promised to Daniel Lapp. Even if Daniel doesn't come back to Iowa, Joy might not be able to see Jimmie ever again as long as Samuel Nisely says Jimmie can't date her. This series of events turned summer into the worst one of her life again, and it all started with Bender Creek Bridge's Troubled Water. Chapter 1 “I am going to have a bobbeli.” After a time of silence while Joy Petermeyer and Melinda Esch practiced their fancy work, Melinda burst out with that startling statement. Her hands shook slightly after making the revelation. She bit her quivering lower lip as she laid the dish towel, snugged in a metal embroidery hoop, in her lap. The pillowcase in Joy's embroidery hoop slipped from her fingers to her lap as her mouth flew open. For once she was speechless as she leaned back against one of two large limestone boulders wedged together. A gentle breeze blew a sprig of her bright red hair down over Joy's eyes. She moved the hair until it stayed behind her ear while she collected her thoughts. On the bank of Buggy Creek, Joy's special place consisted of those two rocks shaded by a stand of plum trees. Joy used them as backrests. This was the spot in her uncle and aunt's pasture where she chose to go when she wanted to be alone. As well, it was the spot she shared with her friends. “Please run that statement by me one more time?” Joy had been hypnotized by the ripples slapping against the creek bank. She worried about how high the creek was going to rise, knowing water could soon flood the pasture. With that worry on her mind, she hoped maybe she hadn't heard Melinda correctly. Melinda focused her attention across the creek at the timber to avoid looking at Joy. Her voice flattened to just above a whisper. “I am going to have a bobbeli.” Joy gave a disbelieving gasp. “A baby! No way!” Melinda slowly nodded a yes. She nervously pushed her gold-rimmed glasses back to the bridge of her nose as she leaned against the other boulder. Joy studied the dark-haired girl's fine features to see if she was serious. When her eyes lit on Melinda's swelling middle, Joy noted the dress fit way too snugly. A new life was taking form in her friend. What popped into Joy's head was that at seventeen Melinda was way too young to have and care for a baby. As for herself, in a couple of weeks, Joy would be sixteen. Her thought about her age was she was still too young to be responsible for a baby and so was Melinda. “You have knocked the wind out of my sails. I must admit I noticed you were putting on weight, but I never dreamed the cause was pregnancy. How long have you known about your situation?” Melinda wrapped her denim jacket around the front of herself to stop Joy from staring at her stomach. “A few months now.” “Like how many?” Joy demanded as she looked straight at Melinda. Her friend shrugged. “Maybe close to four months.” Joy huffed, “Is this Ben Beiler's doing?” “Jah, but I share the blame,” Melinda took a deep breath through her open mouth, showing her crooked teeth. “We spent too many nights alone in Bender Creek timber.” “When are you and Ben getting married? Time is ticking away toward your due date,” Joy pointed out. “I am not getting married, and I am kronk about it.” Melinda's trembling mouth fine lined as she tried not to cry. “You have the right to feel sick. Why forever not aren't you getting married?” Joy pushed, looking astonished. “That's what happens next when an Amish girl is expecting, isn't it? An English girl too for that matter.” Melinda's shoulders sagged. “When I told Ben about the baby, he said this was my problem. He has no intention of marrying me. I have not seen him since I told him, so I reckon his mind has not changed.” Joy slapped her leg. “Daniel was right about that guy. Before he left, he warned me Ben Beiler was bad news.” “When Ben started taking me out my mutter told me Ben is full of the deibel and I should stay away from him,” Melinda muttered. “I hate to judge a person I don't know, but I believe Daniel was right when he said Ben was no good, and your mother is right to say he is a devil. So what are you going to do?” Joy quizzed. “I do not know yet.” Melinda's dark brown eyes filled with the tears she had tried so hard to prevent. Joy scooted closer and put her arm around Melinda's shoulders. “Do your folks know about your --- uh --condition?” Melinda laid a hand on her belly. “That I am pregnant? You might as well say it. I have gotten used to the idea. I had to. My mutter does know because I told her. I had no other choice because I have no idea what I should do. I needed her help. Mamm says we are not going to tell my father unless we have to. She does not know how he will take the idea of me being second-hand goods. She fears he might be harder on me than either one of us would like. He is a very strict man.” “It seems to me, he's going to be able to see for himself before much longer. Don't you think?” Joy pointed out. “Jah, but Mamm says ferleicht she will come up with a plan before he figures it out. I will leave the solution up to Mamm. She usually knows what is best.” Melinda picked up her embroidery hoop and circled the rim with a finger. Sadness crept across her face. Joy grimaced. “Doesn't sound like your mother is too sure what she can do to help you if perhaps is her best answer. I'm so sorry you're going through this difficult time. Is there anything I can do to help you?” Melinda shook her head. “Nah, not right now anyway. Just do not tell your family or anyone about my secret. I would rather no one else knew. It's just that I have been so upset I had to share my trouble with you, my friend.” “If that is what you want, I won't say a word. Cross my heart and hope to die.” Joy went through the motion on her chest. Melinda's problem wasn't hers to talk about. Sure, she'd keep the girl's revelation to herself, but Joy worried about what was going to happen to her friend. The girl wouldn't be looked on in a favorable light from now on when her secret was revealed. Behind Melinda's back, the Amish community would always call her second-hand goods. That term still popped up when Plain people spoke about Bobby Keim's wife Priscilla. Bobby married her, knowing her baby was the result of rape by a no-good Englisher. Even though the incident wasn't her fault Plain people looked down on her. Now she had been married to Bobby Keim for some time and was expecting his baby soon. You would think that would make a difference in their opinions, but some people didn't seem to want to forget Priscilla's past. A week later in early May, Melinda went to the phone shed at the intersection near the Esch farm and called Joy. She invited Joy to go horseback riding with her on that warm afternoon. Joy agreed and offered to meet her at Bender Creek Road turnoff on the Lapp-Bontrager Road. Joy let her shiny, black horse, Raven, trot, enjoying the slight breeze that bounced her bright red braid back and forth. Ever since Daniel Lapp left, she had let her hair grow. Just before Daniel went away, she told him when he came home this August, after a year in Tennessee, she'd be ready to marry him. Hal Lapp had given her lessons in Pennsylvania Dutch and instructions on how to pass the catechism classes. When the time came, she'd pass the classes expected of her by Bishop Bontrager so she could join the church and become Amish. After that, Daniel Lapp and she would wed. First neighbors next to her uncle's farm were Eli and Mary Mast, a young couple about Emma and Adam Keim's age. Their two small girls were hoeing in the garden. The fair-haired little beauties, with beaming smiles, glanced up and waved at Joy. Joy noted the saying dangling from the Mast's black mailbox was Good friends are like stars. You don't always see them, but you know they are there. On the fence post next to the driveway was a sign painted with block letters that stated For Sale Eggs Fresh Vegetables Fruit No Sunday Sales The last line was added for the benefit of Englishers who didn't know that the Amish didn't do business on Sundays. Mary Mast had a large flock of hens, so she probably had plenty of eggs for sale right now. The vegetables would be ready soon, and the fruit afterward throughout the summer. Behind the garden was an orchard with apples, plums, cherries and peaches. The trees were beautiful to behold as each variety of fruit took turns blooming. As she rode past the Nisely farm, Daniel's friend, Jimmie Miller, raised his hand in a wave and continued on to the henhouse with a five-gallon bucket of water. The breeze caused the sign under the Nisely mailbox to flutter. It read, Great peace they have that love the Lord. At the intersection was Chicken Plucker Jonah Stolfus's dairy farm. Jonah was hooking his six golden draft horses up to a disk in front of his new dairy barn. Across the road from the barn, Davie Stolfus was coming out of the house. He waved and walked away, dragging his left leg along. Daniel told Joy he broke his leg in a riding accident, and his leg didn't heal right. First place on the Lapp–Bontrager Road was Bishop Bontrager's farm. Jane Bontrager stopped hoeing in her garden and straightened up to rub her back. Joy waved at her, and Jane waved back. The sign under their mailbox said God promises a safe landing, not a calm passage. If God brings you to it, He will bring you through it. Reading all the mailbox signs made Joy want to paint one for their mailbox. She'd have to talk to Aunt Nora and find out if she had a favorite saying. As Joy rode past John and Hallie Lapp's farm, she right away noticed the yard was quiet. Their three smaller children, Redbird, Beth, and Johnnie must be taking a nap. Their dog, Biscuit, must be napping under the porch swing. Maybe he was getting hard of hearing. Otherwise, he would be barking at her. Suddenly, memories of how badly she missed Daniel came rushing in on her, creating a ladened weight in her chest. Joy pushed the thought away. Daniel wasn't here. As much as she missed him, she just couldn't dwell on him right now. If she didn't put him out of her mind, the sad feelings would ruin her whole afternoon. Joy reached the Bender Creek Road turnoff before Melinda did. She dismounted and stretched her legs. In a few minutes, Melinda came trotting down the road on her red horse, Sam, waving a greeting. They rode along Bender Creek Road with their horses at a walk so they could talk. Melinda said, “I have been thinking. We should have a change from camping out by Buggy Creek this summer. Try a new place, ain't so?” Listening to the horses' hooves clip-clop on the hard dirt road, Joy shrugged. “I am perfectly willing to camp in a new spot. Have you got a place in mind on your farm?” “How about we camp out here in Bender Creek timber?” Melinda suggested, rubbing her fingers up and down her reins. “That is a perfectly horrible idea,” Joy declared. “Those beer keg parties the teens attend get pretty rough. They never know when the sheriff is going to send his deputies out to raid a party. I don't want to get mixed up in one of those raids and get arrested. That would send Uncle Jim and Aunt Nora ballistic for sure.” “You are right about that. My folks would not be happy with me either.” Melinda rode quietly for a time like she was giving what Joy said proper thought. “Doesn't look like a good idea to go wading in the swimming hole right now,” Joy joked as she pointed toward the tumbling water. Melinda frowned. “Jah, we would drown for sure if we tried.” “I've watched the water rise in Buggy Creek the last few days. If the creek goes over its banks, I may have to move my sheep, the horses and cow up by the barn,” Joy shared. When they reached the red covered bridge across Bender Creek, Melinda arched her back and rubbed it. “After we walk the horses across the bridge, I need to stretch my legs before we ride on. For some reason, I have been getting cramps in my right leg calf.” “Fine with me,” Joy agreed. The wooden floor of the bridge made the horses' clip-clops thud twice as loud. The girls felt safer, leading their horses through the bridge. When the noises made the horses nervous, Joy and Melinda rubbed their faces and talked soothingly to them. That was enough to keep the horses calm. About midway through the bridge, the horses became used to the noise. They figured out nothing was going to harm them. Once they were off the noisy, wooden floor, the girls led their horses over to the side of the road where they could graze grass and calm down. Joy became enthusiastic as she took in the timber scene around them. “I love spring so much. That's when Mother Nature creates new births; leaves on the trees, wild flowers in the timber and ditches, and baby animals are born for us to watch.” When Melinda didn't reply, Joy glanced toward her friend. Melinda was rubbing her stomach, and her face puckered up like she might cry. “I'm sorry, Melinda. That was an unconscious slip of the tongue on my part. I will try to remember to be more considerate of your feelings from now on.” Melinda drew in a deep breath. “It is all recht. I have to be strong and not think everything said is aimed at my problem.” Joy focused on the dirty water as it rushed under the bridge, making an angry sound. Snow-melt and spring rains had filled Bender Creek as full as Buggy Creek was at home. Near them was a narrow trail into the timber. Joy studied it for a moment. “Looks like someone has been using that trail on a regular basis. The grass has been tromped down. Must be hunters using the path, but I don't think there are any animals or birds in season to hunt right now. It can't be fishermen. River's too full to catch fish.” Melinda nodded and faced her friend. “Joy, I was down that trail recently. I have something I want to show you. Sort of a surprise. Follow me and lead your horse down the path.” She clucked her tongue and pulled on her horse's reins. “Come on, Sam.” Joy looked worried. “Are you sure we can make it with the horses? The underbrush is bound to be extremely dense to get horses very far down the path.” Melinda nodded. “We can make it fine I promise. I have been down this path a few times recently, leading Sam.” She led the way. Joy noted the path did look like it had recently been beaten down for a long ways. The flattened plants in the path had wilted to a dark green color. Joy talked soothingly to Raven when his ears laid back. Her horse was leery of these strange surroundings as bushes tickled him on one side or the other. As they passed under a hickory tree, a squirrel, flattened on top a high limb, barked an angry warning. Raven's head bobbed up. He was on the alert. Joy rubbed his nose. “Easy, Raven. Mr. Squirrel isn't going to bother us. He just wants to warn us to be nice while we walk by his home.” Joy didn't like upsetting Raven. “Melinda, are you sure we can make it through this timber with the horses? I hate to work to hold onto Raven when he's upset. This underbrush and the noises are making him nervous. How much farther are we going?” Melinda glanced back over her shoulder as she kept walking. “Jah, we can make it fine. Like I told you, I have led Sam down this path before. We do not have much farther to go. I promise.” Melinda stopped about five hundred feet into the timber. “We can tie the horses loosely here so they can graze.” She tied Sam to one of the large limbs on a dead log. Joy walked Raven a few feet away from Sam and tied him to another limb. The horses relaxed. Their minds were on snipping the tops out of tender ragweeds, mayapples and pink lady's-slipper orchids around their feet. Joy frowned as she watched the patch of flowers eaten and trampled. If there had been anywhere else to tie the horses, she'd have suggested it. Melinda turned when Joy didn't follow her. “What I want to show you is just on the other side of these multiflora rose bushes.” Melinda parted the branches and disappeared behind the bushes. Joy followed. They stepped into a small clearing. Melinda pointed to a large log. “Sit down for a moment so we can rest.” She eased down and ran her finger up and down the tight seam on the side of her purple dress. “I will be taking the seams in my dresses out again soon if my belly keeps growing.” “You surely will have to enlarge your dresses since I'm sure you will keep growing. I wonder if there is enough seam left to make that dress as big as you will need it.” When Melinda gave her a quizzical look, Joy added, “But I'm no expert about having a baby.” “Nah, and I know I am not,” Melinda said softly. Joy surveyed the open grassy area. “You said you had been here before. Had hunters been using this clearing for a camp? From the way it looks, it has been kept cleared.” Melinda licked her dry lips and fingered one of the ties on her prayer cap. “Nah, the hunters do not know about this clearing, I am pretty sure. That's what I wanted to talk to you about. Remember I said we needed a new place to camp just for a change. This clearing is the place I was thinking about. Lately, I have taken the time to clear away the underbrush and redd up the camping area. I made the path large enough to bring our horses in here with us.” “You have been busy. That was a lot of work for you to do in your condition.” Joy contemplated the area, still doubtful. “Ach, it did not take me long to get rid of a few months' growth. Ben and I had the place looking like this last summer. Ben did most of the work that time,” Melinda admitted. Joy stared at her. “You camped out here with Ben Beiler?” “Nah, we did not camp. We just came here to spend time alone. Mamm and Daed would not have let me stay here all night with Ben,” Melinda said. “I should think you would have such bad memories about this place now that you wouldn't want to come near it,” Joy retorted. “I do not have bad memories about this campsite,” Melinda retorted. “I have always liked coming here.” Joy looked around. “I'm not sure this clearing is perfectly safe for two girls to camp in alone. Not like in my uncle's pasture or near the pond on your farm.” “I know you sounded before like you had doubts when I mentioned camping in Bender Creek timber. That is why I wanted you to see this spot before you made up your mind. This is a big timber, and we are the only ones who know about this clearing. We are far away from the picnic clearing where the keg parties happen. No one would even know we are here. Recht?” Melinda asked, looking hopefully at Joy for her approval. “Well, maybe,” Joy relented. “I wanted a special place like you have. Joy, I chose this for my special place.” Melinda waved her hand in a circle. “Does this meet your approval? Please say jah.” “I truly think everyone needs a special place to call their own. It's just the Bender Creek area is usually so public in the summer. People come just to see the covered bridge and cross it,” Joy reminded Melinda. “People come to see the covered bridge during the day. They would not come after dark. This area is quiet at night when we would be camping here. Take it from me. I have been here enough in the evenings to know what I am talking about. Please say jah.” Joy's stand softened as she saw Melinda's hopeful gaze. “It is your right to pick your special place. I guess if you are happy with this clearing I should be, too. Right now we have to watch the water level. Soon this area may be under water.” “Gute, I will call you from the phone shack when I have a free time to go camping and set it up with you. It is so much fun to camp out when we do it together, my friend. I am looking forward to camping in this new spot in the timber.” Melinda stood up. She was satisfied now that she had persuaded Joy to go camping there. “I have rested long enough. We can go back to riding before the afternoon is gone. My mutter will worry if I am late getting home to do my chores.” Once they were on Lapp–Bontrager Road again, Joy said, “You want to stop by my cousin Hallie's farm with me. We won't stay long. It's just that I haven't visited with Hallie and her children for two weeks.” Melinda eyed Joy with a gleam in her dark eyes. “You sure we are dropping by to visit with Nurse Hal, or is that just an excuse to see if she has had a letter from Daniel Lapp lately.” Joy narrowed her eyes, not liking to be teased about Daniel. Melinda grinned and winked at her. “Maybe a little of both.” Joy admitted sheepishly. If the first chapter sounds interesting, get the rest of the story at the above mentioned places and don't forget to leave a review so others know you read my book. Enjoy Author Fay Risner