The Hawaiian Quilt
Read The Hawaiian Quilt Online
Authors: Jean; Wanda E.; Brunstetter Brunstetter
© 2016 by Wanda E. Brunstetter and Jean Brunstetter
Print ISBN 978-1-63409-224-1
eBook Editions:
Adobe Digital Edition (.epub) 978-1-63409-988-2
Kindle and MobiPocket Edition (.prc) 978-1-63409-989-9
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted for commercial purposes, except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without written permission of the publisher.
All scripture quotations are taken from the King James Version of the Bible.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any similarity to actual people, organizations, and/or events is purely coincidental.
Cover design: Buffy Cooper
Cover photography: Richard Brunstetter III; RBIII Studios
Published by Shiloh Run Press, an imprint of Barbour Publishing, Inc., P.O. Box 719, Uhrichsville, Ohio 44683,
www.barbourbooks.com
Our mission is to publish and distribute inspirational products offering exceptional value and biblical encouragement to the masses
.
Printed in Canada.
To LeAnna Lehman, a special Amish friend who has visited the Hawaiian Islands.
And to our friends, Bob and Sue Miller, who have a heart for the Amish people.
Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares
.
Hebrews 13:2
Prologue
Middlebury, Indiana
M
andy Frey gazed at the travel brochures lying on the kitchen table. The pictures were so vibrant and enticing she could almost smell the soothing scents of the tropical flowers and hear the gentle lapping of ocean waves. Ever since her Mennonite cousin Ruth went to the Hawaiian islands for missionary training two years ago, Mandy had yearned to visit. For a little over a year, she had saved toward the trip. She’d invited three of her closest friends—Barbara Hilty, Ellen Lambright, and Sadie Kuhns—to go on the cruise with her. They’d kept their plans secret until they had enough money and had made arrangements for time off from their jobs. They would leave in one month, traveling by train to Los Angeles. From there, they’d be on a cruise ship for four-and-a-half days until they reached their first Hawaiian island.
Paging through another brochure, dazzling pictures of cascading waterfalls and scenic mountains heavy with vegetation gave her goosebumps. Everything seemed so colorful in Hawaii—even the exotic birds. She wished she was there right now.
Excitement bubbled in Mandy’s soul as she envisioned herself sitting on the beach with her toes in the warm grains of sand, inhaling the salty air. “This is a trip of a lifetime,” she murmured. It was one she would probably never make again, so Mandy wasn’t about to let anything or anyone dampen her spirits.
But the hope of nothing spoiling her enthusiasm didn’t last long. When she’d told her parents this morning about her plans, Mom wasn’t happy and tried to talk her out of going, saying Hawaii was too far away. She’d also mentioned if Mandy had a problem while she was there, her family wouldn’t be readily available to help.
Dad hadn’t said much, other than telling Mom their only daughter was a grown woman and had the right to make her own decisions. Mandy could have hugged him right then and there, but held back, not wanting Mom to feel hurt or left out. Mandy’s younger brother, Milo, had sided with Mom, but Mandy ignored his concerns. She and her friends had booked their trip to Hawaii through a local travel agency, and she would not change her plans. The only person left to tell was her boyfriend, Gideon. She hoped he would take the news well.
Los Angeles, California November 1
A
s Mandy sat with her friends, waiting to board the cruise ship that would take them to Hawaii, her thoughts went to Gideon. It had been difficult saying goodbye to him before their driver took them to the train station in Elkhart. She felt bad about his negative reaction when she’d told him she planned to make this trip with her friends. She should have said something sooner, so he would have been more prepared for her departure.
Diverting her thoughts, Mandy watched the young boy sitting across from her, bouncing in his chair while drinking a can of orange soda. He spilled it down the front of his shirt and started howling and kicking his feet.
Patiently, the child’s mother got up and took him by the hand to the restroom.
Mandy leaned close to Barbara and whispered, “That little guy is sure a handful.”
“
Jah
. I don’t envy his mother. He’ll probably keep her plenty busy on this trip.”
Mandy listened to the steady hum of voices around her. The terminal was filled with an air of excitement, but her thoughts returned to Gideon, remembering his hurt expression as he held her hand. “I don’t want you to go, Mandy, but if this is what you want, then you have my blessing and ought to follow your heart. I’ll be here when you get back, and then we can talk about our future.”
Mandy didn’t know if her future was with Gideon. They’d been courting over a year, and she’d suspected for some time he wanted to propose marriage. He’d no doubt held back because she hadn’t committed to joining the church. Since every couple planning to get married in an Amish community must first join the church, there was no point in him proposing until they both had been baptized and become church members.
I may feel ready when we return from this trip
, she mused.
If I do, then I’ll take classes to prepare for church membership
.
Ellen snapped her fingers, causing Mandy to jump. “Our number’s been called. It’s time to board the ship.”
On the Cruise Ship
“
Ach
, this room is much smaller than I thought it would be, even if it is nicely decorated. It’s not much bigger than the two tiny rooms we had on the train that brought us to California.” Barbara’s eyebrows rose as she made a sweeping gesture of the room they’d been assigned. “And how are the four of us supposed to sleep when there are only two beds?”
Mandy shrugged. “Maybe someone made a mistake and gave us the wrong room.” She couldn’t imagine how these arrangements would work. Their travel agent had told them the room they’d booked would sleep four, and it included two bunk beds. They’d either been misinformed or someone made an error. Perhaps two other people on the ship had been shown a room with four beds. They needed to get to the bottom of this before they unpacked their suitcases.
“Look, there’s one of the Pullman beds! The other one is up there, too.” Sadie pointed to the ceiling above one of the small beds on the floor, and then to the other. “Remember, our agent said it would be similar to a top bunk bed, except instead of being held up by posts extending from a bottom bunk, it’s supported by brackets attached to a wall. It can be folded up into the ceiling when not in use to create more space in the room.”
“It’s certainly folded up right now.” Ellen raised her head, squinting her blue eyes. “How are we supposed to get the beds down from the ceiling?”
“We won’t have to worry about putting them up or down, because one of the ship’s attendants will pull the beds down for us at night and raise them again each morning when our room is serviced.” Sadie’s tone was typical—so matter of fact.
Mandy couldn’t help grinning.
Leave it to Sadie to know all the details
. Even at home, whenever the four young women planned to do something together, Sadie made sure of the details. She was usually responsible for making all the arrangements, too. Last month when the girls got together to do some sewing at Sadie’s house, she’d made certain everything was laid out before they arrived. She had even provided them with needles, thread, and scissors. All Mandy, Ellen, and Barbara had to bring was the material they planned to cut and sew. Sadie prepared a casserole for their lunch that day. The smell of it warming in the oven had greeted them as soon as they’d entered the house.
Barbara cleared her throat, bringing Mandy’s thoughts to a halt. “I hope I don’t have to sleep in one of those upper bunks. I’d feel claustrophobic being so close to the ceiling.”
“Me, too,” Ellen agreed. “And I’d be worried about falling out.”
Mandy folded her arms. She didn’t want to sleep on a top bunk, either, but this problem would be resolved sooner if she volunteered. “I’ll give it a try. How about you, Sadie?”
Heaving a sigh, Sadie gave a nod. “Since we’ve settled the sleeping arrangements now, why don’t we unpack?”
“It can wait awhile. Right now, I want to take a tour of the ship.” Smiling, Barbara pointed to the door.
“I’m all for that!” Ellen pushed a strand of golden-blond hair back under her white head covering and moved toward the door, no doubt as eager as Barbara to check things out.
“Let’s go for a walk and look at what’s available for us on a few of the outside decks. I’d like to see if there are any good books in the library, too,” Sadie suggested. “Afterward, we can head up to the room where lunch will be served buffet style.”