The Sound of an Amish Wind

By Sarah Amberson

An Englisch doctor comes to an Amish town to help out during a flu outbreak...Not looking to find romance, he can't help but see a kindred spirit in the beautiful Caitlyn and he becomes drawn to her religious beliefs as much as her pretty face.

But despite being rich and successful, the good doctor doesn't think he's good enough for Caitlyn. And some of his fellow suitors agree. Meanwhile, Caitlyn is being forced to choose between a few men that her mother has chosen for her while secretly pining for the freedom in the Englisch world that the doctor represents. Will they overcome the obstacles and follow their hearts?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Trellis Publishing
• Release date: Jul 3, 2021
• ISBN: 9798201614881

Book preview

THE SOUND OF AN AMISH WIND

SARAH AMBERSON

TABLE OF CONTENTS

THE SOUND OF AN AMISH WIND

GREY CLOUDS, NO RAIN

LONGINGS

AMISH CREEK

COTTON SHEETS & SHUTTERED WINDOWS

The sound of wind howling seeped into the half-open window of the yellow taxi. It was autumn and the breeze was a bit stronger than normal. The further that the taxi went down the old country road, the more curious John felt. The houses became simpler with every mile, and the cars scarcer.

He knew that this was a rural area, with only a small hospital and a whole slew of small-town people. It was not his typical scene. Being a doctor in Chicago was never a simple affair. There were always emergencies and extra shifts and lots of people around. He almost missed the bustling of the hospital that was his life. Something was calming about crowds and chaos for John.

The only reason that John and agreed to come out and help with the flu outbreak in this tiny town was because he needed a break from the business. John knew that even a flu outbreak in a small town would be like a break compared to his normal workload.

Most people thought that as a young doctor, he didn’t have a lot of responsibility. But he did, he was one of the most respected doctors and was given as many cases as he could handle and then some. Sleep was often foreign to him and rest was unheard of.

The taxi finally pulled to a slow stop in front of the hospital building. The driver looked at him through narrowed eyes in the rearview mirror.

Here we are, do you need help with your bags? The taxi driver asked.

No, I’ll handle it. Thanks, keep the change. John handed the taxi driver a hundred - dollar bill. He knew he had paid practically double what he should have, but money wasn’t a problem from him. That was one perk of being a well-known, sought after doctor.

He pulled his one simple suitcase from the trunk of the taxi and paused in front of the doors of the tiny hospital. It was nothing like the Chicago hospital, with its many floors and its elevators and different shifts.

The Chicago hospital was one of the largest in the United States. It was enough to overwhelm anyone.

This hospital, on the other hand, was a one-story building, made of brick, with several large glass windows staring out at him.

It had a run-down look as if no one had bothered to care for it in years. When he walked up the steps, they creaked under his weight. An old doctor's sign hung against one side of the door. Even though things seemed ancient and simple, the place at least looked clean.

He took a deep breath and stepped inside. An older man was waiting for him by the door. He was wearing a long white doctor's coat and had an unreadable name tag pinned just over his pocket. He had eyeglasses and a crooked smile on his face. John immediately noticed the signs of exhaustion that he suffered from all too often.

There were bags under the man’s eyes, and a glazed over look in his eyes. His greying hair looked extra grey. You must be Dr. Lenwar. The man extended his hand.

John shook it strongly, Call me John, tell me how I can help, and I will do my best.

The older man nodded, You can call me Kenneth. I am the head doctor here. The only doctor actually. Most of the patients are from the Amish community. They are a very closed group and it takes a lot for them to search out medical help.

John nodded, I don’t know a lot about the Amish community to be honest.

Well, I can tell you, they are an interesting group of people. There are a couple of young women helping me out here during the outbreak.

Kenneth led John down the hall and through a set of double doors. John was taken a little aback by what awaited him. There were cots and homemade beds taking up most of the floor space. The room looked as if it were used to having maybe forty hospital beds with proper spacing, but right now there were over one hundred and fifty and they were all full.

The beds were simple, with nothing but a thin sheet and sometimes an IV beside them.

Wow, I didn’t expect that there would be this many.

Kenneth nodded, a serious look in his eyes. Half of them are from the town, the other half from the Amish community. The community is a large one. A few thousand people if I had to guess. The flu is sweeping through everyone, quite a few have gotten serious enough to come here. It’s different than most any flue I’ve seen in these parts. Much more aggressive.

John nodded and left his suitcase by the door. He rolled up his sleeves and set his bag on the table. He pulled out some of the instruments he would be using. Tell me where to start.

Kenneth motioned toward a young woman at the back of the room. She was laying a cool cloth on a patient's forehead. Her hair was swept back in a bun under a simple white cap, but wisps of it had fallen out to frame her face. Maybe it was the simple blue dress that she as wearing or the attentiveness she portrayed, but there was something elegant and beautiful about her.

That’s Caitlyn. She’s been a huge help. She can tell you who is in most need of a visit.

John nodded. I can take care of things for a while if you need a break. As soon as the words left his mouth, he felt as if it might have been taken offensively.

But Kenneth only looked relieved. Thank you, if I’m honest I have been needing a break for quite some time. I will be in the break room taking a bit of a rest.

John nodded, We will come to find you if we need you.

Jon watched Kenneth leave the room and then headed over to Caitlyn.

My name is John, I’m the new doctor. Kenneth told me you could show me around.

Of course, it’s nice to meet you, I’m Caitlyn.

John didn’t tell her that he already knew her name, but instead followed her down a row of sick people.

Most of them are almost over the flu. There has been a lot of fevers and throwing up. But I think a lot of them will go home tomorrow. Caitlyn sounded sure of herself.

It sounds like you know a lot about medicine and the flu. John was impressed. He knew little about the Amish, but he had never met an Amish doctor.

I- I wanted to be a nurse. I guess I still do. Caitlyn looked suddenly embarrassed, her cheeks flushed red.

Then why don’t you become one? You could still go to school and learn.

I can’t. Caitlyn looked away.

Why not? John was curious now and wanted to know.

The Amish don’t believe in going to college. I’ve only been about to eight grade. But I don’t even know how far that would get me.

John shook his head. They won’t let you become a nurse?

It’s not that simple. Caitlyn still looked reluctant to be talking about it. Here is the room with critical patients. Maybe you could look at them first.

John looked around the new room. It was about a third of the size of the first room, but the beds were in the same repair. There were too many of them, and they were filled with patients who definitely needed a checkup.

John forced himself to turn back to Caitlyn. Thank you for showing me here. John glanced around the room. With one look he could already tell that these patients were much worse off than the first ones he’d seen.

There was the sound of coughing, nose sniffing, and the occasional sound of a bedpan being vomited into. None of these were sounds that John particularly enjoyed.

Do you mind if I tag along? Caitlyn asked quietly, shyly.

John looked over at her, surprised. He would have thought that the sweet Amish girl would want to get back to less sick patients.

Of course I don’t mind. Your company would be wonderful. Why would I mind? John asked.

Caitlyn was looking up at him with clear eager eyes. I have a lot of questions. I just thought if I tagged along maybe I could learn something.

I don’t mind questions. You go ahead and ask anything you would like. John led the way to the first patient and Caitlyn followed. John had a feeling that this was going to be a more interesting job than he’d first thought.

—-*—-

Caitlyn shoved off her shoes as soon as she stepped into her mother’s house. It was so late, she almost thought her mother had gone to sleep. But her mother always waited up for her and tonight was no exception.

The lights were off in the house. The only sign that someone was awake was the soft glow coming from the kitchen. Caitlyn would guess it was coming from a lamp. Caitlyn walked down the hallway quietly, the floorboards made creaking noises as they came in contact with her feet.

Caitlyn’s mother was there in the kitchen, right where Caitlyn had expected her to be.

She was sitting at the kitchen table, a large cup of tea in front of her, and a worried look on her face. She looked up and caught Caitlyn’s eye with a smile. There you are, I was starting to think you wouldn’t show up.

Caitlyn shook her head. She knew that her mother did not really like her spending so much time at the hospital, but she didn’t care. She loved her work at the hospital. And now that John was there, she liked it even more.

Kenneth was a capable doctor, but he didn’t like to talk, and he hated questions. John on the other hand loved answering questions. Whenever Caitlyn asked something, he would go into a long explanation and she couldn’t get enough.

She enjoyed every single word of his answers and stored the information deep into her mind so she could access it at a later date.

She had accepted that she would most likely never be brave enough to leave the Amish community and pursue her dreams. Working at the hospital and spending time learning with John was at least close.

Ma, you know I wouldn’t stay the night at the hospital. I am just trying to help. This flu season has been terrible.

Don’t you think I know that? There have been people I knew who died. How do you think I feel about you being exposed to so much sickness? There is more chance than ever that you could get sick.

Caitlyn shook her head. "Mama, I