Amish Circle Letters II: The Second Circle of Letters by Sarah Price Page A

had seen so much of each other recently that she felt everyone was caught up on the periphery news. It was the deeper news that bothered Leah. The news she wanted to share but just couldn’t. Not with the extended family.
    Indeed, how could she tell them that her husband avoided their home? Jonah spent his entire days in the fields, even though there wasn ’t much work required during this particular time of year. Then he would spend his evenings in the barn, making up chores to do rather than share time inside the house with his family.
    And when he did come inside…
    Leah shuddered.
    When he did come inside, well he was overly critical of everything. Her food. The messy kitchen. The dirty floors. The baby. Especially the baby, she reckoned. It pained her heart to admit it but admit it she had to: Baby Caleb was unloved by his daed . At least it appeared that way. It was all that Leah could do to make up for the lack of fatherly affection by smothering her baby with extra love and attention. After all, it wasn’t Caleb’s fault that he had Down syndrome.
    Unfortunately, that came with a price.
    The chores were left to the older kinner who seemed to do the bare minimum before disappearing. So the kitchen remained a mess, the floors stayed dirty, and the baby persisted in having those special needs that required all of Leah’s time.
    No, there was nothing new or exciting to write on that blank piece of paper. Leah knew that right away. She resented most of these circle letters, letters that always emphasized the good and hid the bad. She had come to systematically wonder about what wasn’t being said in these letters. In particular, she wondered what Mary Ruth would write when it would be her turn. Oh, indeed, Leah had seen her youngest sister just the other day at Steve’s wedding. Mary Ruth had looked none too happy, that was for sure and certain.
    Serves her right, Leah scoffed. Marrying that Menno Yoder so quick after his first wife died! And, with Elijah fighting the cancer, Menno would have made a right better match with Rachel! Why, that feisty Mary Ruth just snatched Menno from under their older sister’s nose, it appeared
    “Seems I ’m not the only one with issues,” Leah mumbled to herself.
    “Issues?”
    Leah jumped, startled by his presence. She had been unaware that Jonah had walked into the room and was observing her from the doorway. The kinner were at school and Caleb was napping. Indeed, Leah had been so deep in thought that she hadn’t heard Jonah enter through the back door.
    He stormed over to the table. “You writing one of those circle letters again?” He snatched the paper from the table and stared at it, his eyes narrow and sharp. “There ’s nothing written on here!”
    Leah took a deep breath and reached up to retrieve the paper. “That ’s right,” she said. “Nothing on the paper because there is nothing to say.”
    Jonah shook his head. “Leah, you need to get your act together. Instead of writing silly letters, you need to take charge of this house. I ’m tired of living in filth and squalor. That baby is sleeping right now. Why are you writing letters instead of tending to your chores? Tend to the needs of this family, not your other family.”
    Leah ’s mouth fell open. How dare he, she thought. But she knew better than to lash out at him. That was not the place of a woman to argue with her husband. And, from the scowl on Jonah’s face, she knew that any argument on her behalf would be met with fury.
    “You clean this kitchen, Leah. It ’s been months since it’s been cleaned proper like!”
    “The baby will be…”
    He held up his hand, interrupting her. “‘Will be’ is future, Leah. That’s just an excuse. You can wash the morning dishes and clean the counters. When Caleb awakens, you don’t have to sit and hold him all day. He can stay in the playpen while you scrub this floor. It’s unfit for a baby to crawl on, anyway!”
    She gasped out loud.
    Jonah