Following Your Heart (32 page)

Susan waved as she turned the horses around again.

“One more round,” Susan hollered, “and then I'll give you a chance.”

“Okay!” Teresa yelled back, admiring how easy Susan made it look. How graceful her friend was, riding effortlessly on the metal seat. The circus performers she had seen on TV back home couldn't have looked any more graceful.

Teresa laughed at the thought. How long had it been since she had watched television? Months now, yet it seemed like years. All her mother's warnings about missing what she used to have were so off mark. If Mom only knew.

The thought of her mother turned Teresa's smile to worry. What was Mom doing on such a wonderful spring day? Sleeping likely, or getting ready for another afternoon's work at McDonald's. That was if she still worked there. Mom didn't know anything better, didn't believe there was anything better. And yet there surely was. And Teresa was living it.

Why couldn't Mom come here and see for herself what she was experiencing? Teresa sighed. Like that was going to happen. Mom would have freaked out a long time ago. One look at Deacon Ray with his long, stern face and white beard. One whisper of who you had to marry, and Mom would have gone running home before the next sunrise.

“But see, Mom, you're so wrong,” Teresa whispered. “These people do know what they're doing.”

And now that they knew her better, they had seen fit to remove the restriction that she marry Yost Byler. But Yost Byler would be exactly what she needed in a husband. No more running around after men who caused shivers to run up and down her spine, but left horrible consequences in their wake. Yost Byler gave no shivers, but he was a safe man. And that's what she needed. She would marry him, truly and completely leaving behind all her old life.

“Yes, I will marry Yost Byler,” she said to the open fields. “I have finally come home.”

Susan approached with the team.

Teresa's heart started to pound.

“Ready?” Susan asked as she brought the team to a stop.

“Yes, I guess so,” Teresa said. She moved forward and tripped, sprawling onto the ground, ending up with the huge, round feet of the horses inches from her nose.

“Oh my!” Susan said, getting down and helping Teresa up. “That's not a good way to start your day's adventure.”

“I might get killed yet,” Teresa worried, taking Susan's hand. “But let the journey begin! I'm ready.”

Susan laughed. “You are a hardy soul, indeed. Now sit on the seat, brace your feet on that board,” she said pointing. “I'll be standing right behind you.”

“What if I make you fall off?” Teresa asked.

“Don't worry about that. If I have to, I'll jump sideways. I won't get hurt.”

“And what about me? I'll be alone with the horses!”

“Just holler ‘
whoa
' really loud and pull back on the lines. They'll be glad to stop,” Susan said.

“Oh Lord, have mercy on me,” Teresa prayed as she positioned herself on the metal seat and braced her feet.

“Now take the lines with both hands,” Susan instructed. “They will help you balance if you lean lightly backward, keeping some tension on them.”

“Okay,” Teresa said. “But will you take care of Samuel if I die?”

“Come on!” Susan laughed. “It's not that hard.”

“That's easy for you to say.”

“Okay, here we go!” Susan said. “And this will be bouncy, so let yourself go with the flow. Kind of let your body flop around. Don't fight it and soon you'll get the rhythm.”

“I think my brains will go flying out!” Teresa said, hanging on to the lines.

“Get-up,” Susan ordered. She clucked. “Come on, boys! Teresa, I'm right here with you. It will be fine!”

The horses moved forward, tightening the traces with a soft snap. Then they lurched forward.

“How do I turn?” Teresa screamed.

“You just pull the reins to the left or right. I'll tell you when,” Susan said in Teresa's ear. “I'm watching where we're going.”

Teresa hung on and closed her eyes for a few moments.

“A little to the left,” Susan said.

Teresa's eyes whipped open and she jerked the lines left. The horses swung wide, their heads arched sideways.

“Not that hard next time,” Susan said. “Pull back to the right.”

Teresa jerked the lines right, and the horses' heads and bodies swung the other way.

“Here! Give me the lines!” Susan shouted in Teresa's ear. “Hang on to the seat for a minute.”

“I'm ruining your dad's plowed field,” Teresa moaned as they bounced along.

“It's nothing that can't be fixed,” Susan said, bringing the horses back to a straight line and then stopping them. “Now here, try again.”

“Oh my! I can't!” Teresa cried, but she grabbed the lines. “This is much harder than it looks.”

“Yes, but you can do it. Now,
gently
turn them to the left,” Susan instructed. “Gently…gently.”

Teresa pulled, her touch lighter this time. The horses adjusted, turning slightly.

“Now turn gently to the right.”

The horses moved right as Teresa guided them. She let off the tension on the reins.

“You did it! See, it's easier than driving a car,” Susan said.

“I've never driven a car,” Teresa retorted. “So I wouldn't know.”

“You're doing fine,” Susan said. “Now say ‘get-up' and cluck to them.”

The horses moved forward in a straight line.

“Now we're coming to the end of the field, so take the horses to the left. Gently… not too hard,” Susan instructed. She reached around and added her hands to the reins.

They made the half circle with four hands on the lines. Once the horses were going straight, Susan let go.

“What an awful-looking line I'm leaving,” Teresa howled, as she looked back. “It looks like wavy lines.”

“You're doing fine for your first time. We'll straighten it out on the way back,” Susan said, chuckling. “You didn't do any harm.”

“Speak for yourself,” Teresa said. “I'm getting off when we get back to the barn.”

“Are you sure?” Susan asked. “This is just your first round. You'll get the hang of it.”

“It's all my heart can handle,” Teresa said. “I'm getting dizzier by the minute.”

“Do you want to stop now?” Susan asked, a bit alarmed.

“No,” Teresa said, “but I'm getting off at the barn.”

Minutes later, as they approached the barn, Susan said, “That was quite
gut
.”

Teresa pulled back the lines, bringing the horses to a halt. She handed them to Susan, turned, and then jumped off in one leap, going down to her knees with the momentum.

“Are you okay?” Susan asked.

Teresa brushed off her skirt. “Glad to be alive mostly. I sure hope Yost doesn't plan on me doing much of this.”

“I think he has his farming under control,” Susan said. “If you can cook for him, he'll be a happy man. But really, Teresa, you did
gut
for your first time. You should try it again.”

“I'll see about that tomorrow,” Teresa said, moving toward the fence. She stood watching as Susan took the horses down the field. Across the fence she saw Menno wave to her.
He must have been watching. I guess he's okay with my clumsy performance
. Yah,
he's probably used to girls who don't know how to drive horses the first time they try. After all, he probably taught all of his girls. He's a good-hearted man who tolerates the learning process
. She smiled and waved back to him.

Remembering the laundry on the line, Teresa washed her hands at the spigot in the barn, allowing the wind to dry them as she ran over to the clothesline. She checked several of the garments for dampness and found them dry to the touch. Going into the washroom she retrieved the hamper and headed outdoors again.

“That was
gut
work in the fields,”
Mamm
said with a smile when Teresa came in with a heaping load of clean wash. “I was watching. We'll make a farm girl out of you yet.”

T
he early afternoon sun spilled through the green trees of John Troyer's place. The rays fell onto the newly mown lawn. Church benches were spread out, some running parallel to each other with wide spaces between, others cutting across at right angles. Under the shade of an old oak, several men sat trading stories, leaning forward at times to laugh and sitting back up as they chewed on their toothpicks. Behind them the front door opened, and the second round of young boys from the dinner tables came rushing out, pulling on their hats as they ran across the grass toward the barn.

Deacon Ray's son, James, came up behind Thomas Stoll and tapped him on the shoulder. “I have to speak with you,” he whispered.

“About what?” Thomas asked, pausing in the middle of the flow of boys.

“Not here. Out in the barn where it's private,” James said, motioning with his head toward the men seated near them.

Thomas laughed but followed James out to the stables. “So what's the big secret, huh? Are you planning some stunt tonight you don't want the men to know about?”

“
Nee
,” James said. “I just think you and I need to get on the same page concerning our girls.”

“You have a girl?” Thomas asked, looking at him in surprise.

“Not yet,” James said. “But I'm moving in that direction.”

“You're not planning to move in on Susan, are you?” Thomas wasn't laughing anymore.

“If I wanted to do that,” James replied, “I certainly wouldn't tell you, you big oaf. I'd let you find out for yourself
after
I had her safely in my buggy.”

“So what have you got in mind?” Thomas asked, still not smiling.

“It's about that crazy scheme of yours to get rid of Teresa,” James said. “You know, hitching her up with Yost. Well, it's not working. As
Daett
told me last night, the ministers will no longer be holding her to the engagement. I think
Daett
figures I'll forget about Teresa now, but he's wrong. So, what I want you to do is back off on encouraging Yost.”

“
Yah
, I heard about the change,” Thomas said, chewing on a toothpick. “But what do I have to do with it? I only went to speak with Yost that once.”

“That's why Yost will come whining to you about Teresa not being required to marry him on her baptismal day. And when he does, I don't want you to give him any encouragement regarding Teresa,” James said.

Thomas broke into a smile. “Aren't you getting the cart before the horse? Or has Teresa agreed to let you take her home after the hymn singing?”

“
Nee
,” James admitted. “I haven't even spoken to her about that, which brings up another reason I wanted to speak to you. Let's go visit the girls together this afternoon. Invite them out for a nice sunny walk on the lawn.”

“You want me to go see Susan and take you along?” Thomas laughed. “Like that will do any good for either of us.”

“I don't see you speaking with her now,” James pointed out, “let alone taking her home on Sunday nights. Working with me, I'm sure you can improve your standing with Susan. You should have spun your schemes with me a long time ago!”

Thomas stared off into the distance, thinking.

“If you stick with me,” James offered again, “you will be talking with Susan this afternoon.”

“What makes you think the girls will say yes?” Thomas asked.

“Well, they wouldn't if it were just you or me alone with one of them,” James said. “But together, it's more likely they'll agree. It won't mean quite as much, you see. At least they can tell themselves it will be just an enjoyable walk and talk—nothing more. And Susan might enjoy herself with you if she feels the pressure is off a little. We could kind of ease into their good graces.”