completed eighth grade before they left Jefferson County, and so now she would attend vocational school just one morning a week until May. She needed to hand in her diary where she kept account of the homemaking jobs and farming chores she had done that week. And along with the other vocational “scholars,” as the Amish called them, she would study arithmetic, spelling, and German, a few hours each week.
Earlier in the week, Dat had made arrangements for them to travel with an English van driver who also hauled two other Amish families’ children to school. Because there weren’t enough families in Cameron County to build an Amish school, the few Amish children that lived in the area attended an Old Order Mennonite school. Lizzie didn’t know one thing about these Mennonites. Dat said they drove horses and buggies, but they had some practices that were different from the Amish.
Lizzie tried to remain calm and serene as she wet down her hair and worked at combing it in the new Cameron-County way. After four or five attempts, she decided it was good enough, especially since there wasn’t much time to try again. She smoothed her new dark purple dress, pinning her black apron and her covering into place. After one last glance in the mirror, she was ready to go.
“How do I look?” she asked as she stepped into the kitchen.
Emma was at the counter, kneading bread.
“You look fine,” she said. “You’re hair doesn’t even look too bad.”
Lizzie tried to smile, but she felt as nervous as Mandy looked. It was also Mandy and Jason’s first day at school, and both of them were near tears over breakfast. Outside, Jason made up songs as he ran little circles in the driveway.
“I wish you were coming with us, Emma,” Lizzie said.
Emma added some more flour to the bread and began to shape the dough into a loaf. She had finished her vocational class before they left Jefferson County and now worked at home full-time, like other Amish girls her age.
“You’ll do fine,” she said.
Lizzie nodded. She took a deep breath as a black pickup truck with a flat camper on the back popped over the hill and rolled to a stop at the end of their drive.
A white-haired, balding gentleman jumped out and helped them into the truck. Inside were two boys and two girls. The boys looked so much alike with their very blond hair and blue eyes that Lizzie thought she must be seeing double. They didn’t say anything as they watched Lizzie climb into the back of the pickup as gracefully as she could.
“Hi,” said the girl with the same blond hair and blue eyes as the twins. “My name is Sara Ruth. These are my brothers, Joe and John.”
“I’m Lizzie,” she said. “This is my sister, Mandy, and my brother, Jason.”
Jason squirmed in his seat, while Mandy smiled.
“And this is my cousin, Sharon,” Sara Ruth said.
“Hi,” Sharon said quietly.
Sharon wore a navy dress that had little lines in it and lovely sleeves with pleats in the shoulders. Lizzie could hardly wait to ask Mam to make a similar dress for her. Sharon’s hair was dark brown and very straight, rolled up neatly along the side of her face. Did her hair look that nice? Lizzie wondered.
The truck rolled to a stop outside of the brick schoolhouse and they all clambered out. Lizzie slipped her hand in Mandy’s.
“I hope the Mennonites are half as nice as the Amish are,” she whispered.
“Me, too,” Mandy said quietly as they followed Sara Ruth into the cloakroom. Pretty floral sunbonnets hung from hooks around the room, next to narrow-brimmed boys’ hats made of black straw.
A large group of girls followed them into the classroom.
“Lizzie, this is Viola, her sister Irma, and Marlene,” Sara Ruth said, pulling or pushing each girl forward. Some of the girls giggled and others shrugged as they tried to free themselves from Sara Ruth’s grasp, but they all managed to say, “Hello.”
Lizzie knew she met Lucy, Etta, and Jean, but she could not keep
Earlier in the week, Dat had made arrangements for them to travel with an English van driver who also hauled two other Amish families’ children to school. Because there weren’t enough families in Cameron County to build an Amish school, the few Amish children that lived in the area attended an Old Order Mennonite school. Lizzie didn’t know one thing about these Mennonites. Dat said they drove horses and buggies, but they had some practices that were different from the Amish.
Lizzie tried to remain calm and serene as she wet down her hair and worked at combing it in the new Cameron-County way. After four or five attempts, she decided it was good enough, especially since there wasn’t much time to try again. She smoothed her new dark purple dress, pinning her black apron and her covering into place. After one last glance in the mirror, she was ready to go.
“How do I look?” she asked as she stepped into the kitchen.
Emma was at the counter, kneading bread.
“You look fine,” she said. “You’re hair doesn’t even look too bad.”
Lizzie tried to smile, but she felt as nervous as Mandy looked. It was also Mandy and Jason’s first day at school, and both of them were near tears over breakfast. Outside, Jason made up songs as he ran little circles in the driveway.
“I wish you were coming with us, Emma,” Lizzie said.
Emma added some more flour to the bread and began to shape the dough into a loaf. She had finished her vocational class before they left Jefferson County and now worked at home full-time, like other Amish girls her age.
“You’ll do fine,” she said.
Lizzie nodded. She took a deep breath as a black pickup truck with a flat camper on the back popped over the hill and rolled to a stop at the end of their drive.
A white-haired, balding gentleman jumped out and helped them into the truck. Inside were two boys and two girls. The boys looked so much alike with their very blond hair and blue eyes that Lizzie thought she must be seeing double. They didn’t say anything as they watched Lizzie climb into the back of the pickup as gracefully as she could.
“Hi,” said the girl with the same blond hair and blue eyes as the twins. “My name is Sara Ruth. These are my brothers, Joe and John.”
“I’m Lizzie,” she said. “This is my sister, Mandy, and my brother, Jason.”
Jason squirmed in his seat, while Mandy smiled.
“And this is my cousin, Sharon,” Sara Ruth said.
“Hi,” Sharon said quietly.
Sharon wore a navy dress that had little lines in it and lovely sleeves with pleats in the shoulders. Lizzie could hardly wait to ask Mam to make a similar dress for her. Sharon’s hair was dark brown and very straight, rolled up neatly along the side of her face. Did her hair look that nice? Lizzie wondered.
The truck rolled to a stop outside of the brick schoolhouse and they all clambered out. Lizzie slipped her hand in Mandy’s.
“I hope the Mennonites are half as nice as the Amish are,” she whispered.
“Me, too,” Mandy said quietly as they followed Sara Ruth into the cloakroom. Pretty floral sunbonnets hung from hooks around the room, next to narrow-brimmed boys’ hats made of black straw.
A large group of girls followed them into the classroom.
“Lizzie, this is Viola, her sister Irma, and Marlene,” Sara Ruth said, pulling or pushing each girl forward. Some of the girls giggled and others shrugged as they tried to free themselves from Sara Ruth’s grasp, but they all managed to say, “Hello.”
Lizzie knew she met Lucy, Etta, and Jean, but she could not keep
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