A Time for Peace Read Online Free PDF Page A

was once again not pregnant. She didn't need to be Amish to feel that children were a gift from God; wanting more than these precious three Matthew was sharing with her seemed greedy. He told her often that it was God's will if they had more and she believed that. She truly did.
    It was just that she had these moments of disappointment thinking that she and God weren't on the same page. So to speak. But was He listening to her?
    "As soon as I finish the chores and clean up, we'll go get Phoebe at the hospital," Matthew told her.
    "I could go by myself—"
    "No, we'll go together," he said firmly. "She's family."
    Reaching out, she pulled him closer by his suspender and kissed him. "Thanks."
    Mary came into the room a few minutes later. "Annie wasn't in my bed when I woke up and she's not in her room."
    "It's okay. She's in my bed," Jenny told her. "She got up really early and wanted to go get Grossmudder before school."
    Mary's face brightened. "Can we?"
    "No, sweetheart." She hated the way Mary's face fell. "But she'll be here when you come home."
    "Okay. Do you want me to go get Annie?"
    Jenny smiled. "That would be wonderful. And for that, you get to choose what we'll have for breakfast."
    Mary thought for a moment. "French toast?"
    "French toast it is." Jenny got a skillet out, set it on the stove, and rummaged in a drawer for a spatula.
    Mary passed Joshua as he walked into the room, rubbing his eyes.
    "You snooze, you lose," she told him smugly.
    "Huh?" He looked from her to Jenny.
    "Early bird gets the worm," she said and walked out of the room.
    "We're having worms for breakfast?" he asked, making a disgusted face.
    "Your mamm would never make you worms for breakfast," Matthew chided, finishing his coffee and setting the cup in the sink.
    "You never know what she might make," Joshua told him."You remember she made scrapple." He grabbed his throat and made a gagging noise as he started for the door." How can anyone eat that with what's in it?"
    "Some people like scrapple," Matthew pointed out.
    "You think you're so funny with the comments about my cooking!" Jenny popped him on the fanny with the spatula.
    "Hey, ow!" he cried. "She hit me!" he told his father.
    Matthew shook his head and tried to suppress a grin. "A wise man always compliments the cook."
    "Right!" Jenny said. Then she frowned. "Wait a minute, that sounds like a backhanded kind of comment. Are you saying you compliment my cooking even when you don't think it's good?"
    Matthew cocked his head. "Did you hear that?" he asked Joshua.
    Joshua listened hard. "I don't hear anything."
    "There it is again. Bessie's calling for us. Back soon," he said quickly and the two of them rushed out the door.
    "Very funny," Jenny muttered. "Like a cow's calling you!"
     

     
    "I tried to call you," Phoebe said when Jenny and Matthew walked into her hospital room. "They're insisting on keeping me another day."
    "Another day? But why?"
    "Just more tests. You know how doctors love to run more tests."
    "What kind of tests?"
    "Just the usual stuff," Phoebe said vaguely. "You get older, they want to do more tests."
    Jenny sank into a chair beside the bed. "Now you're getting me worried. Since when would you meekly agree to these? I expected you to be waiting at the front door when we arrived, impatient to be out of here."
    She studied her grandmother, feeling that something wasn't being said, that more was going on here than—
    An aide knocked on the doorframe. "Ready to go?"
    Phoebe nodded. She lifted the covers and her feet emerged, covered with bright red crocheted footies. When she saw Jenny staring at them, she laughed. "The nurse on duty last night gave them to me. A friend of hers makes them for patients.They kept my feet nice and cozy."
    "How about we bring you some of your own things this afternoon? Since you have to spend another night."
    Jenny felt her heart warm at Matthew's suggestion. "Maybe your robe?" she suggested, smiling at the way her grandmother wore a