The Road Home by Tommy Tenney

Author:Tommy Tenney
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: ebook, book
Publisher: Baker Publishing Group
Published: 2010-10-28T04:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 30

“On one of my first mornings in Moab,” Naomi continued, her voice sounding far away, “I was busy cleaning out the rooms of the motel—since I was the new housekeeping supervisor— when through one of the windows I saw three women in long, plain-colored dresses walk by. I strained to look closer and saw that their hair was tightly woven into buns and they were wearing little bonnets. I was so enthralled, I thought I’d faint right there on the spot. Old Order. They had to be. But I’d never heard of any settlements all the way out in Utah. Could they be with another Order, a group I hadn’t heard of? And how could anyone farm the desert soil? I mean, without using a massive, intrusive water diversion system—which would go against everything Old Order people believed in?

“I hurried out into the parking lot, hoping to approach the women before they disappeared out of sight behind the motel office. I found them waiting to cross the street. The nearest woman, who appeared to be in her teens, caught sight of me and smiled. When the pedestrian light said it was safe to walk across, I followed them, trying to keep my distance and avoid looking like I was following them. To my surprise, they entered a nearby self-service laundry. I’d been doing some laundry there myself, so I walked in after them and asked the lone attendant if I could buy a spare box of detergent as I’d supposedly run out. The whole time I watched the women, closer now, from the corner of my eye. It was odd— neither the color, nor the shape of their bonnets, nor the style of their dresses showed them as part of any Order I’d grown up with. In the past, I could usually identify a woman as married or unmarried, Amish or Mennonite, horse and buggy or black bumper, and any one of thirty different Old Order variations after just a second’s glance at their attire. But when it came to the three women doing their laundry, nothing of what I saw triggered anything truly familiar in my mind.

“Curious, I finally approached the women. The older two were sitting down, holding up large garments just pulled from an open dryer. They looked up at me with a mixture of goodwill and wariness.

“‘Can we help you?’ asked the eldest. ‘Is something the matter?’

“She probably asked the last question after seeing the nervousness that had suddenly overtaken me. I then knew how all those tourists felt, approaching Old Order families just like my own back in Pennsylvania, feeling both profane and impolite for attempting the simplest of human interaction.

“‘Hello. Um—sorry to bother you, but I was just wondering, I grew up Mennonite and … I mean, I was just wondering what Order you belong to?’

“‘Order? No Order. We’re Latter-Day.’

“ ‘Latter Day? I have not heard of that one.’

“‘Yes, Latter-Day Saint …’ She waited for my recognition, then added, ‘Mormon.’

“Then the light came on, and with it came embarrassment.

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