Fraying at the Edge by Cindy Woodsmall Page B

while to chill about it and see that it’s fun.”
    Why did he put such a premium on buying and enjoying things? She continued reading. “Attend an outdoor fund-raising concert?”
    “I’m helping with a charity event next Saturday for a student of mine who’s battling cancer. I saw that you held an Amish benefit, and I thought it’d be good for you to see how we hold an English fund-raiser. It’ll have a concert, a talent show, food, games, and whatever else the committee comes up with to earn some money for the family.”
    That was certainly something she could agree to. “Okay.”
    “Really?”
    “Yeah, sure. Something like that didn’t need to be on this list.”
    “Good.”
    She returned to the list. He also wanted her to find a friend, go shopping with an Englisch friend four times, stay in a hotel, watch twenty-five movies, pick one religion and learn enough about it to pass a college-freshman-level test, and pick a destination at least seven hundred miles away and drive there by herself. “This is a lot of stuff.”
    “You have a year to chip away at those items. Twenty-five movies over the course of a year is only one movie every other week.”
    She read more. “Go to a bar?” What kind of dad
wanted
his child to go to a bar? Especially an underage child!
    “Yeah, a bar. Just to see that neither the bar nor the people who go there are something to fear. If you learn anything this year, I’d like it to be that life should be lived with bold, brassy courage.”
    “I’m not even of legal drinking age.”
    “Then don’t drink while you’re there. But if you ever do drink, it’s okay as long as you never, ever get behind the wheel of a car afterward. Just call me, and I’ll pick you up.”
    “It’s against the law, hence me telling you I’m underage.”
    “You don’t have to color inside the lines all the time. Even the law allows for a little underage drinking in the privacy of your home for religious reasons.”
    “You don’t even believe in God.”
    “That’s not the point, Ariana. I’m just saying there’s some leeway.” He gestured toward the list. “But if you don’t want to do that one, choose something else. I’ve listed ten categories, things like education, travel, relationships, electronic entertainment, novels, and the like. Under each heading there are fifteen to twenty-something suggestions. Each one is worth at least one point, and you only need to earn a hundred points.”
    “And then what? Do I get to go home?”
    “Not home, no. Then you don’t have to do anything else on the list. Look, if you spend the next year doing the things on the list, I’ll be able to deal with whatever decision you make at the end of the year.”
    Did he think she would change her mind about returning home and joining the faith if she completed his bucket list? She lowered the papers and looked at him. “I’ve already made my decision.”
    The lines in his face mirrored his frustration and his effort to be patient. “Okay.” He stretched out the word. “Until then, we do things my way.”
    “Yeah, that much I’m clear about.” She went through the pages again, and this time her eyes caught the words “four dates.” “You’ve listed dating, but I’m seeing someone back home. We’re not officially engaged, but we are talking of marriage.”
    “So find a male friend, go on a few dates, and don’t even hold his hand. But go out and get involved in life differently than you ever have. That’s what I want. If a specific suggestion crosses your sense of moral rightness, don’t do it.”
    “Why does
dating
have an asterisk?” She flipped through the pages again. “Several on the list have two or three of them.”
    “Those have more value. As I said, you have to reach a total of a hundred points. Each suggestion is worth one point, and each asterisk is worth five points.”
    Could she figure out a way to earn a hundred points quickly so she would be done with this? “If I