“My siblings and I wanted to, but Dat thought it would be too hard on the pony . . . and on all of us, too, so we didn’t. Ponies are very intelligent, I’m sure you know. It was important for her to settle in with her new family.”

“No wonder you’re interested in working at the retreat.” He chuckled, then asked more specifics about the kinds of responsibilities she had there.

Anna was happy to fill him in. Then she added, “I can’t believe how many new friends I’ve made since coming here.”

“Friends are the whipped cream on the pie of life,” he said with a grin.

“Did you just make that up?”

He chuckled. “I actually did.”

“Well, whipped cream is the best part of the pie.”

“That’s what I meant.”

They shared a laugh, and then she asked about last Saturday’s volleyball tournaments, which Mart had mentioned to her last week.

Mart brightened, clearly pleased as he described a few of the sets. “I wish you could have been there. Some were definite nail-biters.”

“Were Austin and Charlotte part of it?” she asked.

“Yes, and they’re both quite good. In the end, our church’s team squeaked out a win for the championship,” he told her, putting his thumbs up. Then he glanced at his watch and said he had to get ready to meet a family coming in from New Jersey.

Anna nodded as he excused himself and headed out to meet his clients. She decided that this weekend might be a good time to return to Mifflinburg for a visit, since Mart hadn’t said anything about going out with the group again.

I’ll leave right after my morning at Peaceful Meadows.

The week sped by, and on Friday, Anna helped Sadie clean house. Afterward, they made more of the inlaid fabric cards.

While they worked, Anna shared quietly that Mart hadn’t invited her to do anything this weekend. “I guess it shouldn’t bother me, since it’s not like we’re dating. But I’d kind of hoped he would.”

Sadie seemed to take her words to heart. “I believe he’ll ask ya out again, Anna.”

She nodded slowly, thinking how caring it was of Sadie to be so optimistic.

“So, are you still planning to go home for the night tomorrow after working at the retreat?” Sadie asked.

Anna said she was and that she was looking forward to seeing her family again. “I especially want to see Mammi Eliza. I’m worried that if she slips further away mentally, I’ll wish I’d visited her more.”

“Well, who could blame ya? I feel the same about Eva.” Sadie went on to say that, lately, Eva was sleeping a lot more. “She’s fatigued even after she wakes up from a nap.”

“Does she sleep through the night, do you know?”