scooped a spoonful from inside the cavity of the turkey. She pushed the spoon toward Emily’s mouth.
“Wait, Mamm . It’s hot.” Emily leaned her face away while Mamm blew on the spoon.
“Here, try it now.”
Dressing had always been her mother’s specialty, and she’d made it every year for as long as Emily could remember, for both Thanksgiving and Christmas, and for their entire extended family. Lots of families in Middlefield had adjusted their traditions over the years, opting to have something other than turkey for Christmas, since they’d just had it for Thanksgiving. Plus, weddings were always in November and December, and turkey roast was served after the ceremonies. Emily was sick of turkey by Christmas each year and wished her mother would consider a change in tradition. Not Mamm . She wouldn’t hear of it. “It wouldn’t be Christmas without turkey and dressing,” she’d said.
“ Gut , no?” Mamm’s left brow lifted as she waited for Emily to finish chewing.
“ Ya, Mamm . It’s fine.” Emily rol ed her eyes. “It’s always fine.”
Her mother breathed a sigh of relief, then returned to the stove and began stirring some green beans in a pot.
Betsy looked up from a book she was reading. “I’m going to be vega... vegetarian when I am a grown person.”
Emily grinned as she pul ed apples and oranges from the refrigerator for a fruit salad. She glanced to the left so she wouldn’t miss the reaction from her mother.
“Betsy Ann, you wil do no such thing.” Mamm spun around to face Betsy, her hands on her hips. “What are you reading? I reckon it’s not from the approved list.”
“ Ya, Mamm . It is.” Betsy’s big brown eyes grew round. “The boy, Ben, in this book is a vegetarian.” Betsy nodded her head once for effect. “It’s more healthy to be one of those.”
Mamm shook her head. “It wonders me, is nothing safe in this world anymore? A gut Christian book about a ten-year-old boy who finds the Lord, and yet . . . he has to be a vegetarian?” Mamm slapped her hands down to her sides. “Not for you, Betsy. You would miss meat. And meat has protein. It’s gut for you.”
“I’m gonna be one anyway.” Betsy closed the book and stood from the table. “When wil everyone be here?”
“Around eleven is what Lil ian said.” Mamm turned to Emily. “Lil ian said that she thinks David has sure taken a fancy to you. Evidently, he has mentioned your name several times, and—”
“We’re just friends, Mamm .” Emily knew that her father would reprimand her for taking such a sharp tone with her mother, something she’d been guilty of too often lately, but she could see her daed and her brothers through the window, shoveling the snow from the sidewalk. “Don’t push about this.”
“He just seems like such a nice young man, Emily. Maybe you should give him a chance.” Mamm lowered the fire under the beans.
“David Stoltzfus has no interest in dating me, so you’re wasting your time being hopeful about something developing between us.” Emily didn’t look up as she chopped the apples into smal cubes.
“Now, Emily...” Mamm sighed as she turned to face Emily. “You don’t know that. You are a beautiful young woman, and Lil ian said he speaks fondly of you.”
Emily took a deep breath, stopped chopping, and faced off with her mother, determined to squelch her mother’s misdirected thoughts. “David told me straight to my face that he doesn’t want to date me, that al he wants is to be friends. And, Mamm ...” Her tone sharpened. “That’s al I want too. So please just drop it.”
“I don’t like him anyway.” Betsy padded across the wooden floor in her socks, stil toting her book as she headed toward the den. She stopped once to look at Emily and scrunched her face into a scowl. “He made you cry.”
“Betsy, we talked about that.” Emily’s voice grew louder as she spoke, but Betsy didn’t turn around.
“I wil not have such talk, Betsy.
“Wait, Mamm . It’s hot.” Emily leaned her face away while Mamm blew on the spoon.
“Here, try it now.”
Dressing had always been her mother’s specialty, and she’d made it every year for as long as Emily could remember, for both Thanksgiving and Christmas, and for their entire extended family. Lots of families in Middlefield had adjusted their traditions over the years, opting to have something other than turkey for Christmas, since they’d just had it for Thanksgiving. Plus, weddings were always in November and December, and turkey roast was served after the ceremonies. Emily was sick of turkey by Christmas each year and wished her mother would consider a change in tradition. Not Mamm . She wouldn’t hear of it. “It wouldn’t be Christmas without turkey and dressing,” she’d said.
“ Gut , no?” Mamm’s left brow lifted as she waited for Emily to finish chewing.
“ Ya, Mamm . It’s fine.” Emily rol ed her eyes. “It’s always fine.”
Her mother breathed a sigh of relief, then returned to the stove and began stirring some green beans in a pot.
Betsy looked up from a book she was reading. “I’m going to be vega... vegetarian when I am a grown person.”
Emily grinned as she pul ed apples and oranges from the refrigerator for a fruit salad. She glanced to the left so she wouldn’t miss the reaction from her mother.
“Betsy Ann, you wil do no such thing.” Mamm spun around to face Betsy, her hands on her hips. “What are you reading? I reckon it’s not from the approved list.”
“ Ya, Mamm . It is.” Betsy’s big brown eyes grew round. “The boy, Ben, in this book is a vegetarian.” Betsy nodded her head once for effect. “It’s more healthy to be one of those.”
Mamm shook her head. “It wonders me, is nothing safe in this world anymore? A gut Christian book about a ten-year-old boy who finds the Lord, and yet . . . he has to be a vegetarian?” Mamm slapped her hands down to her sides. “Not for you, Betsy. You would miss meat. And meat has protein. It’s gut for you.”
“I’m gonna be one anyway.” Betsy closed the book and stood from the table. “When wil everyone be here?”
“Around eleven is what Lil ian said.” Mamm turned to Emily. “Lil ian said that she thinks David has sure taken a fancy to you. Evidently, he has mentioned your name several times, and—”
“We’re just friends, Mamm .” Emily knew that her father would reprimand her for taking such a sharp tone with her mother, something she’d been guilty of too often lately, but she could see her daed and her brothers through the window, shoveling the snow from the sidewalk. “Don’t push about this.”
“He just seems like such a nice young man, Emily. Maybe you should give him a chance.” Mamm lowered the fire under the beans.
“David Stoltzfus has no interest in dating me, so you’re wasting your time being hopeful about something developing between us.” Emily didn’t look up as she chopped the apples into smal cubes.
“Now, Emily...” Mamm sighed as she turned to face Emily. “You don’t know that. You are a beautiful young woman, and Lil ian said he speaks fondly of you.”
Emily took a deep breath, stopped chopping, and faced off with her mother, determined to squelch her mother’s misdirected thoughts. “David told me straight to my face that he doesn’t want to date me, that al he wants is to be friends. And, Mamm ...” Her tone sharpened. “That’s al I want too. So please just drop it.”
“I don’t like him anyway.” Betsy padded across the wooden floor in her socks, stil toting her book as she headed toward the den. She stopped once to look at Emily and scrunched her face into a scowl. “He made you cry.”
“Betsy, we talked about that.” Emily’s voice grew louder as she spoke, but Betsy didn’t turn around.
“I wil not have such talk, Betsy.
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