The Tapestry of Grace by Kim Vogel Sawyer

Author:Kim Vogel Sawyer [Vogel Sawyer, Kim]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: The Crown Publishing Group
Published: 2023-04-18T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Nineteen

Konrad

Being invited to Sunday dinner two weeks in a row might spoil him and his boys, but Konrad couldn’t deny how much he enjoyed eating at Frau Dyck’s table. While the food was simple compared to what Frau Krahn had served the week before, everything was flavorful and the company pleasant. Even after they’d eaten all of the fried fish fillets, wilted dandelion greens, and boiled carrots, he had no desire to hurry home.

Herr Elias poured himself another cup of coffee from the pot near Frau Dyck’s elbow, then glanced at Konrad’s empty cup. “Would you like some more?”

Konrad, like Herr Elias, had already drunk two cups with the meal. That should be enough. But he nodded anyway. Frau Dyck took the pot and filled his cup, then her own. The sight made Konrad smile. Apparently she wasn’t in a hurry to send them all away.

Frau Dyck’s daughter laid her napkin on her plate. “Mother, may the boys and I have some of the oatmeal cookies you baked last week? There are still quite a few in the crock.”

Walden’s and Folker’s eyes lit. After all they had eaten, Konrad couldn’t imagine them still being hungry, and he told them so.

Folker shrugged. “There’s always room in my stomach for dessert, Pa.” He raised his eyebrows and angled a pitiful look at their hostess. “We hardly ever get dessert at home.”

Konrad cringed, but Frau Dyck laughed. “Spoken like a typical boy. Juliana, please put a dozen or so cookies on a plate and bring it in here. The men might like some with their coffee. Then you and the boys may take your cookies to the backyard. You can show them your favorite climbing tree.”

The twins whooped and bounded out of their chairs. They clattered after Juliana, and Frau Dyck watched them, a fond smile on her face. When they’d disappeared beyond the doorway, she aimed the smile at Konrad and Herr Elias. “I’m sorry I don’t have something more elaborate for dessert. Since the cookies are a few days old, they’ll probably be hard.”

“That makes them perfect for dipping,” Konrad said, then wished he hadn’t. Was dipping cookies in one’s coffee a polite thing to do at someone else’s house? His years of living with only the boys for company had stolen some of his manners. He needed to regain them before he took a new wife.

Frau Dyck took a little sip from her cup. “My Vater dipped nearly everything in his coffee—cookies, toasted rolls, even slices of cake.”

Herr Elias’s brow furrowed. “How did he dip cake into coffee?”

The woman laughed lightly. “Oh, he didn’t dip the cake. What a mess that would make! He put the piece of stale cake in a bowl and poured coffee over it, then ate it with a spoon.” The corners of her lips quivered, and her eyes went moist. “He wasn’t one to coddle us children, but he always shared a spoonful of the soggy cake with me even though Mutter scolded that the coffee would stunt my growth.

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