Christmas in Apple Ridge Read Online Free PDF Page A

alone
every
thought. She wore black, the color of a brokenhearted widow. She could have been grieving for a family member, but something about her said the pain she carried was different from that of losing a relative. He guessed she’d lost a large piece of herself. But the rest of her stirred him—as if she needed someone, a friend or relative, to help her sand away the pain etched into her life and dig deeper to carve a new scene.
    He’d never considered sanding off someone’s old life, not even when they’d lost a loved one. It seemed to him the past carvings should be preserved and a new spot found for fresh carvings. Or perhaps new carvings should include the old carvings. But to remove what had been and start fresh? He was mistaken about that. Had to be.
    “Jonah.” His grandmother spoke over the loud banging. She held out a cup of water.
    He hadn’t realized she’d come into the schoolroom. He wiped his brow. “Denki,
Mammi
.” He took a long drink. “Even sitting in a window doesn’t provide enough of a breeze in this heat.”
    “Only bad shepherds use entrances other than the door. Didn’t your mother teach you anything?”
    “Yes, she did. That you’re a troublemaker.” He tried to keep a straight face but wasn’t able to hold back his laughter.
    “How many window units will you need to replace?”
    “All of them. The sashes are too rotten to make it through another school year, but so far all the casings have been completely sound.”
    “So you’ve been at this for a couple of days?”
    “Ya.”
    “You met the new teacher and had help, then?”
    He wasn’t fooled. She knew he had plenty of help from the men in the community. Her curiosity centered on the new teacher.
    “Yes to both, Mammi. Every man in our community has come to help as time allowed. Right now they’re either helping the women with other things or on the roof repairing bad shingles.”
    “Your presence here has caused a fresh buzz among the young women.” Mammi motioned out the window. “You need to find one who suits you before you’re too old.”
    He finished drinking the water she’d brought him and passed her the cup. “If only one of them was half as amazing as you …”
    Mammi moved closer. “Stop teasing your poor grandmother and find someone. I’ve seen you carve life out of deadwood. Can’t you try to do that in a relationship?”
    “A worthwhile relationship is like finding the right wood. When it’s the right one, I’ll know it.”
    “And by the time your idealism blends with realism, you may have missed your chance.”
    Using the claw bar, he pulled another nail out of the casing. “So, Mammi, why is there a bee in your prayer
Kapp
about this all of a sudden?”
    “The new schoolteacher, Martha.” She tapped him on the arm, and with her eyes she directed him to look outside near the picnic tables.
    Martha passed half a sandwich to one of the children.
    “While I was talking with her about the upcoming school year, she kept looking your way.” His grandmother held out her hand for the claw bar. He didn’t give it to her.
    “Maybe she’s never seen a carpenter with a bum leg and two missing fingers.”
    “Nonsense. She was drawn to you. I saw it in her eyes. Now go speak to her. At least give her a chance.”
    He removed another nail. “She’s too young.”
    “Too young? She’s probably twenty-two, and you’re only twenty-eight.”
    “No.” He placed several bent nails in his grandmother’s open hand. “She’s about seventeen, and I’m about forty, figuratively speaking.”
    “Well, sometimes older men connect well with younger women.” She wrapped her frail hand around his wrist and pulled.
    Giving in to her, he climbed out of the windowsill. If it’d make her feel better for him to speak to the woman, he could do that much. And while pleasing his grandmother, he’d get a bite to eat from the picnic tables.
    She brushed bits of wood off his shirt. “At least talk with her