Oh, my word! What a royal mess my writing studio had become. My space looked a fright at the end of March, just before my memoir launch party April 1.
On that day friends and family would descend on our home to inspect my second memoir. They’d head for the refreshment bar, but first, they might peer into my writing studio just inside the front door.
Winston Churchill says that writing a book begins as a toy and an amusement, becomes a mistress, then a master and then a tyrant. And then, “just as you are about to be reconciled to your servitude, you kill the monster and fling him out to the public.”
After the tyrant was tamed, my writing space looked like this:
I don’t know why I’m smiling. Maybe feeling goofy because I was keeping such crazy hours. Maybe because I no longer needed these pages and wanted to file them away–out of sight.
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What I discovered after the dust had settled . . . snippets from the blue journal you see at the bottom edge of the photo above. In it, I found bits and pieces I wrote in long-hand about my Grandma Longenecker in 1963, the year I graduated from college and had begun teaching at Lancaster Mennonite School.
October 25, 1963
Her judgment: A couple at Bossler Church with 3 young daughters considered serving as house parents in Honduras. “Should we go?” they asked. “If you want my honest opinion—yes. But it’s your decision.”
Her joie de vivre: On the way to help out at a house sale in Newville, (PA), Grandma burst into song, “Oh, what a beautiful Morning.” (I observed then, “There are not many 74-year-old Mennonite Grandmas who are so spontaneous and plucky.)
An innocent “boast” I met a lady at the sale who hadn’t seen me for 40 years. She said I didn’t look any older than when I saw her last.
Anger vs. acceptance: My sisters and I were irritated about going to Harrisburg in Ruthie’s old, gray car. We sulked and acted peeved about our mode of transportation. Grandma said to us afterwards: “We had a very pleasant trip!”
February 7, 1965
Grandma to me after a rainy Sunday:
“I spent the afternoon recalling some of the poems about rain I memorized in school. Here is an excerpt from what she may have recited:
“Rain,” by Robert Louis Stevenson
The rain is raining all around,
It falls on field and tree,
It rains on the umbrellas here, And on the ships at sea. . . .
July 24, 1966
During my short stay at Grandma’s while doing a writing assignment for Herald Press in Scottdale, PA, I hinted at paying board. Her reply: “Why, I tell the ‘wren-ies’ in the morning sometimes, “No rent, the place (bird-bath) is all yours!”
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Another Discovery: A long-lost letter from Grandma’s daughter, my Aunt Ruthie Longenecker, via my sister Janice Caverly.
June 15, 1971 Here are excerpts from a letter my Aunt Ruthie wrote to me (age 30), I was a mother to Crista, finishing up teaching summer term, and expecting our second child, son Joel.
Dear Marian,
Now that school is over are you housecleaning, too? I’m getting ready for the kitchen tomorrow. On the table here with me are 2 cardboard cartons, full of Grandma’s ferns and flowers + my jar full of slips, and a tumbler with 3 lovely pink roses and some baby’s breath . . . The place generally looks a wreck.
The poem I found while “housecleaning” some magazines. This note places some more I found as a gentle reminder to please send a donation—I’m trying to catch after in an awful lot of places
We surely have been eating our fill of sugar peas and strawberries and lettuce right fresh from the garden. We’ve been having luscious peas and strawberries every day and sometimes 2 times a day for the past two weeks. Cherries and apricots will be next.
Grandma is real good—Last week for a couple of days her back was very crooked—she picked too many strawberries.
I had a letter from Bill. Hope your legs are better. Best wishes to all.
~ Ruthie
Ann Adams illustrated her hand-written card to me with a line drawing. After contracting polio, the artist trained herself to draw with a pencil between her teeth. Each drawing took up to two months to complete.
***
My Studio after the Clean-up
I’ve written about Clean vs. Messy before. Check out a previous POST .
***
A snap from the Launch Party on April 1, 2023, here featuring Bobby Oliver, whom I describe in a previous post as My Ideal Reader!
Pre-Easter party treats at the launch
Book signing at “Riverwood Writes” Writing Club, Nocatee, Florida – Anni Rawcliffe, Leader May 1, 2023
Find my new book HERE!
Besides Robert Louis Stevenson’s verse, what other poems about rain can you recall?
Does it matter whether your work space is clean? messy?
Good morning, Marian! Your study is a lovely, light-filled space.
You have so many wonderful family mementos.
Wishing you all the best with your new book. I will get to it soon(ish). 🙂 April was such a busy month, and I’m behind on everything.
You are one of the most productive women I know, blogging, writing poetry, editing–simple amazing! I wonder now if you still write questions for the Princeton, NJ testing services.
It’s good to see your morning smile, Merril. 😀
Thank you for the high praise, Marian.
I’m not really working on any history books now, but I am very busy with the test writing. Two assignments to get done this month! 😅
I am in awe! Test writing seems like such a hard type of writing.
Thank you!
It has become much more complicated over the years.
Everybody needs an untidy environment every so often, except this artist. He seems to need untidiness often to be creative! 😉
I know of no tidy artist, actually a contradiction in work style.
Here is my chance to thank you publicly for getting me out of a technical “jam” this morning. How I love “assisted living”! ((( )))
Congrats on your clean environment, Marian! My desk is messy right now. Eventually, I’ll get around to putting things away. 😊 Like Cliff, I soetimes need the untidiness, because I need to quickly grab and use some of the things that are on my desk.
Most of the time, tidiness is an obstacle to progress. Like you, I like to get my hands on something quickly. If it’s stored away in some unknown place, I have to hunt, so annoying.
Thank you, L. Marie! 😀
Boy, do I identify with messy piles while being creative. And the important stuff gets the priority floor spots! … I also enjoyed reading Grandma’s notes about Newville and other familiar places from our early years in Pennsylvania, Marian.
Thanks for checking in here with a comment revealing your Shippensburg, PA early life. I hope you had an enjoyable cruise; we’ll have to get together soon. 😀
Oh yes, it matters to have a tidy work space, which I only have 30 percent of the time. My husband’s mess in the garage however is also a creative space for him, which I must remember when scowling at the garage.
“Tidiness hinders creativity” seems to be the sub-text here. When we moved nearly seven years ago, Cliff got rid of at least 1/3 of his stuff. If you saw his garage now, you might scowl–ha! 😀
Happy to see your book is off to a good start, Marian!
I love cleaning up. Not cleaning, but tidying up, organizing things, decluttering. Your office looks immaculate and those strawberries. Yum!
That is certainly something to be envy previous generations: all the fresh veggies and fruits in the yard. I still have fond memories of them as well, when visiting my meter and peter (grandparents) as a child.
When you post photos of Colombia, I often see fresh produce. Be glad you are not in the States right now, food prices have skyrocketed. I feel sad for young families these days and often contribute to Jacksonville’s food banks.
And I’m glad reading this called out pleasant memories; I’m guessing “mete and peter” is Belgian for grandparents. Thanks, Liesbet! 😀
First of all, congratulations on your book launch! Now that you’ve “flung” it out into the world and your office is tidied, what will you do with yourself?
I thought I was the only one who had a seriously untidy study. It wouldn’t feel right to me if all was madly neat and tidy, but sometimes the piles on my desk and tables is toooo much. I like getting ‘some’ order out of the chaos when I set aside for this. Wishing you ongoing success with your book Marian –
Susan, you are in the league of many. Most creatives, I believe, don’t waste extra time keeping things in apple-pie order. Thanks for the good wishes too! 😀
Sorry about Narian instead of Marian
Got it changed on my end–no worries!
I hope you heard me laugh, Linda. You live the writing life too and understand so well how immersive it can be. I’ll think of something: blog posting, marketing, and catching up with family. I hope you are well. I do like your new author profile shot–very nice! 😀
How wonderful to find these treasures. It is often while tidying up that I find interesting things. I should tidy up more often I guess. My work space is due a good clean up. You had a great relationship with your grandmother as I did with mine. We were very lucky. Looks like a fabulous launch party!
Yes, we come from good stock with strong families. We can count ourselves fortunate. Here’s to finding more treasures, Darlene! 😀
I once heard a messy workspace is the mark of an orderly mind. I don’t know about that, but when I’m writing, I also like having my many notes and resources close at hand. Your untidy studio looked more organized than my normal office, and your studio looks wonderful in the after-photo. The tidiest place in my office is my computer screen, and even that gets cluttered when I write. Congratulation on your successful launch party! Your book is the next one I’ll read! Blessings!
Whenever I read your writing, I always hear the enthusiasm in your voice.
Just after my book was published, I noticed how “crowded” my computer desktop was with files and photos. Oh, vey!
I look forward to hearing your thoughts about my book. You can probably relate to some of the scenarios in your own experience. Huge thanks, Patty! 😀
Your post brings a huge smile of familiarity and understanding as we too have these same experiences in disheveled home offices. According to one of my favorite authors, Edith Schaefer, in her book, What Is A Family – a happy family and home encourages each member to have place and space for creativity and industry. You and Cliff model this very well! 👏✍️🎨 🎉. Carol B
I am certain creativity and industry characterize your and Barry’s work space. How productive you both are! Thanks too for the quote from Edith Schaefer, new to me.
😀
Marian — You discovered a treasure trove. That right there is worth the price of admission. I love the contrast between the “before” and “after” photos. But no matter how you slice it, you have lots of natural light—another treasure!
Yup! Natural light + pines, oaks, and palmettos in the preserve across the street in my line of vision. No houses, just the occasional biker or dog walker on the sidewalk. Thanks, Laurie! 😀
Ha! Marian, I can hardly see over the pile of the desk in front of me to write these words on the screen above.I am not usually this messy, but I have multiple projects all requiring their own notebooks, journals, and mugs of tea. I will get around to cleaning it all up when I can no longer stand the mess. 🙂
At various times in my life I’ve been thronged with projects. They have been my saving grace during tough times though. I wonder if you feel the same way in this season of life.
Thanks for catching me up here, Shirley! 😀
Oh yes, I can identify with messes! My office is a disaster right now and I’m not writing a book. My husband Hardy’s second name should be hoarder (confined mostly to the garage). I actually am finding satisfaction in going in there and filling the garbage and recycling bins. It keeps me from dwelling on his cancer diagnosis.
Elfrieda, during tough times I too have found solace in “doing.” Accomplishing something productive (and necessary) helps assuage the distress. You and Hardy continue to be in our prayers. 😀
How lucky you are, Marian, to have so many lovely “pieces of paper” that have survived the years and bring back those who are gone but whose words live on here. I recently received a birthday greetings postcard from a total stranger. She had found the card at an auction in Hagerstown, Maryland. It was written in German by someone in my mother’s family to my grandfather’s stepbrother. What is the likelihood that something over 100 years old would survive in another state and land in a total stranger’s possession, a woman who found me due to Ancestry, and took the time to mail it to me?
Your body of work, memoirs and blog, is quite an achievement representative of your hard work, dedication and preservation of family legacy. I was particularly touched by Ann’s drawing of the little boy and his dog. A treasure and a testament to the human spirit. Oh, and don’t worry about the untidiness of the writing studio. No matter how hard I try, I can’t always keep up with the articles, and the books, and the papers that come with our work. Should I throw this out? Should I keep it?
Thanks for sharing this story here, Susan! Social media is often untidy; sometimes it’s even downright ugly. Still, you can rejoice over the many links in the technology chain that brought you a priceless treasure and written in German, no less!
I appreciate your compliments too, Susan. 😀
Marian, did Susan get a translation of the German message on her card? I’d be happy to translate it for her if she didn’t.
Let me check, Elfrieda.
It was great to read the treasures you unearthed from the blue journal. That bit of family history is a keeper! I love the blue tee-shirt. I’m a charter member of that club. 😉 It looks as though your launch is going well. Lots of smiling faces!
I’m grateful to have author friends like you who walk beside me, able to relate because of your own experiences. Thank you, Liz! 😀
Considering the wonderful mementos you save – letters and such from long ago, I’m amazed that your office space looks as tidy as it does. If you’re like me, you stuff a lot of things in a (deep and long) file drawer. And in the closet which, when closed, gives the suggestion and a perception of a clean office. If the closet door is open- the perception and suggestion are extinguished. 🙂 Seriously, I can’t find a thing if it’s filed in a closed closet or file drawer. But in a mile-high pile of papers, I discover the one I need in an instant.
I value the way you value your ancestors’ notes and cards and letters. Oh, to wonder if our grandchildren and nieces etc. will do the same for ours. (I think not!)
What a beautiful launch for your fabulous (2nd) memoir.
Pam, your detailed description of your office space and filing methods mimic mine. Notice that I never show my entire room, just a “slice” of it, the part I can sorta control. Seriously, I’m okay with some messiness. If I were crazy organized, I’d never get anything done.
As to the last point, so far our offspring don’t seem all that interested in saving artifacts: All except second grand-son who says he would like a monogrammed water pitcher, my blue velvet “meditation” chair, and possibly the ancient oak dining room table. And I’m pretty sure our progeny haven’t read my memoirs. At least I think not! 😀
One of the things my wonderful wife tolerates about me is I’m not the neatest person (okay, I’m a slob). I wish I was better about keeping my work area cleaner because I spend an inordinate amount of time looking for things that I know are there somewhere. What usually happens is I eventually get aggravated one day when I can’t find something and move into deep-cleaning mode. My wife likes these rare bursts of cleanliness, but then the cycle repeats. I rationalize this odd behavior by saying, “Well, I’m a very good husband in most other areas.” She hasn’t traded me in for a new model yet.😊
Pete, I daresay you’ll never ever be traded in. “A good man is hard to find,” to quote Flannery O’Connor, so your husband status is secure. Thanks for detailing your messy-clean cycle. I can relate. 😀
You are smiling Marian because the hard work of writing/editing/finding beta readers etc. is OVER and the book is out! I know there’s a second side when promotion begins, but you HAVE to feel good. 🙂 And it is so impressive that you keep finding these wonderful treasures from your past! I was particularly moved by the artist who had to train herself in a new way to draw. The results are beautiful. ♥ My Checkered Life is going on vacation with me next week. 🙂
You are so good at intuiting my journey and now my emotional state. Thank you, Melanie.
And I’m honored that you are taking My Checkered Life on vacation. I look forward to hearing what you think of it. 😀
I know I’m going to enjoy it! 😀
😀
Wonderful post. Reminds me of the old saying, you can’t make an omelette without breaking some eggs. We have to get good and messy for something wonderful to come out of it. Thanks for sharing photos of the mess that brought about the wonderfulness.
I am so in line with the woman’s T-shirt – I’d rather write than clean the house. It shows, but all my real friends love me anyway.
Arlene, I’m still thinking about your reply to my comment on your last blog post. “One of my favourite things is a quilt handmade by my grandmother with one of the blocks facing the wrong direction.” Such a philosophy helps Type-A personalities like mine to relax a bit and forgive our errors. . . and our messiness.
Thanks for chiming in again! 😀
Whew, Marian, all cleaned up. You do look a little giddy in the first picture, but understandably so. What a great accomplishment! I enjoyed reading the snippets from your journal. You childhood and adult memories are so nice! Congratulations on your new memoir 🙂
I think “giddy” is the right word to describe my emotion when the photo was snapped. Not long after, I realized I need to get serious about promotion, the third step in the writing/publishing/marketing process.
Thanks for the good wishes, Barbara–so appreciated! 😀
You are entitled to look “Giddy” Marian you have done it… finished…Well Done! 🙂
Thanks, Carol! 😀
I like your office, whether it is messy or tidy. I try to keep mine in a state of controlled chaos, just one pile of papers away from covering the entire top of my desk. If I can see a little wood grain when I look down, then I’m *organized*
A little wood grain = organized. I like that philosophy, Ally! 😀
Hi Marian, my workspace is never pristine but it is reasonably tidy. I try to put things away when I stop working on a particular project. My art stuff is currently in piles all over the table though. Neat piles but there are a lot of them. Fun bits of information about your grandmother and aunt.
Robbie, I can think of at least five (5) strands to your creative life, not including family. Your life has many textures and layers; I’m surprised that you can organize your work at all. “Neat piles but there are a lot of them” describes my work space too, when I’m not subjecting it to the camera’s lens.
I’m glad you enjoyed some family lore too. Thanks, Robbie! 😀
Hi Marian, I love family lore and peoples histories. I do have a lot of interests but I try to keep things reasonably tidy.
Your nod to the SA Festival of Children’s Literature was enlightening today, Robbie. Apparently, all of your interests keep you curious and vibrant. Thanks for circling back here, Robbie! 😀
My pleasure, Marian. I’m glad you enjoyed that post.
So good to meet you Marian and look forward to reading more of your thoughts.
What a neat pairing–recipes and stories. It’s good to meet you, Bernadette, and in a round-about-way via Robbie Cheadle’s blog. I’ve written several blog posts featuring Mother making recipes. Here’s a nostalgic one that pays homage to her memory on this Mother’s Day eve: https://marianbeaman.com/2018/05/23/rich-memories-mother-brother-2018/
Thanks for commenting and do visit again! 😀
Marion, I’ve been lost in trying to balance my old dog’s death, my younger dog’s confusion, Meniere’s Disease symptoms, and my Monarch book–which is in the tyrant stage. I wish you would come to my house and help me sort out my chaos, but I’ll have to do it myself. I’ve read a few chapters of your lovely book and look forward to more. Life will settle down as it always does. Please forgive my slow reading and responding pace and know that it isn’t from lack of interest. It’s from too much on my plate. Love to you in the land of flowers (and alligators). Spring has arrived here with birds and early flowers.
Oh, dear friend, I’d much rather that you pace yourself (as you have been doing) than that you tyrannize your life with unrealistic expectations. You loved, loved, loved Willow, and your pet’s death feels like the death of a child, if our previous experience is any guide.
Imagine that I am sitting by your side, Elaine. I can’t help you sort out wheat from chaff (or good wheat from better wheat), but I can be a benign presence. Hugs to yo–and happy thoughts! 😀
what a pleasant workspace – so much nice light there too! wishing you the best!!
Thanks for the nod here–and the good wishes, da-Al! 😀