by MarianBeaman | Mar 21, 2018 | blog, Family / Nostalgia, Mennonite History, Mennonite Lore, Neighborhood / Environment, Quotations, Uncategorized
Howdy, Spring. You’ve been a long time a-comin’ “But you live in Florida,” you say. “Why are you complaining?” I’m not, but I wish for more flowers, more blooming trees, more singing birds ~ strawberries even, which won’t appear until April. I can never get enough of...
by MarianBeaman | Mar 14, 2018 | blog, Family / Nostalgia, Literature, meditation, Mennonite Lore, Quotations, Uncategorized
Magnolias are majestic and magnificent. I love magnolias! Magnolias usually appear in late March in north Florida, fading by June. The sensual blooms suggest both passion and fragility, turning brown as they age. These magnolias come from my daughter’s...
by MarianBeaman | Mar 7, 2018 | blog, book review, Education, Literature, Tips, Uncategorized
Why Do Writers Write? What About Writers’ Block? What is Hypergraphia? Dr. Alice Flaherty answers these questions and more as she investigates the mysteries of the writer’s mind. Both a medical doctor (MD from Harvard Medical School) and a PhD from MIT,...
by MarianBeaman | Feb 28, 2018 | blog, Family / Nostalgia, Lists, Literature, Memory, Quotations, Tips, Uncategorized
Five is the magic number this week: I have arrived at the 5th anniversary of my blog. And as it happens in the Land of Even Numbers, this is my 400th post. Magical! In 2013 when this blog was birthed, I posted twice a week, Wednesdays and Saturdays. As writing my...
by MarianBeaman | Feb 21, 2018 | blog, book review, chalk drawing, Cliff Beaman artist, Uncategorized
Author Cliff narrates the story of his creating The Boy Who Grew Too Small . . . The Dream One night I dreamed about a boy who started shrinking because he began smoking. Why such a dream, you ask? I had just learned that the Florida legislature had won a case...
by MarianBeaman | Feb 14, 2018 | blog, Family / Nostalgia, Memory, Mennonite Lore, Romance, Uncategorized
Missing a Heart A tornado whirling through Kansas, whisked Dorothy and her dog Toto to the magical land of Oz hoping to meet the Wizard in the Emerald City. As they progressed along the Yellow Brick Road, they met three creatures who lacked something important: a...
by MarianBeaman | Feb 7, 2018 | blog, Family / Nostalgia, Mennonite History, Nostalgia, Quotations, Uncategorized
A little church in Alabama with rough-hewn walls holds a glittering stained glass window with this expression: Not lost but gone before. The saying in golden glass ends with a period though it’s not a complete sentence. Yet those five words reflect on a real...
by MarianBeaman | Jan 31, 2018 | blog, Cliff Beaman artist, Conflict, Uncategorized
February is Brotherhood month, often celebrated in schools, and in state and national ceremonies. Any such celebrations in your neighborhood? What does the body language of Garfield and Odie suggest? If you created a...
by MarianBeaman | Jan 24, 2018 | blog, Cliff Beaman artist, Family / Nostalgia, Memory, Nostalgia, Tips, Uncategorized
Do you procrastinate? Are there unfinished projects lying about in your house? Years ago in graduate school at Florida State University, my husband Cliff made these bisque-fired salt and pepper shakers. He says creating the shakers was a side project back then,...
by MarianBeaman | Jan 17, 2018 | blog, Family / Nostalgia, Reflection, Tips, Uncategorized
The Confession As of January 5, 2018 I had found 3768 photos on my iPhone along with 158 videos. Gasp! When I began organizing the host of photos, none of the pictures were tagged with subject. Only an image number identified each photo (IMG_2548, for example). And...
