by MarianBeaman | Dec 13, 2023 | blog, book review, Literature, meditation, Quotations, Uncategorized
Medical Musings and Playing with Words Mercifully, I’ve skated through more than seven decades of life with few aches and pains. Over the years, my sympathy for others has extended to sending get-well cards, making phone calls and hospital visits....
by MarianBeaman | Nov 29, 2023 | blog, Family / Nostalgia, Memory, popular culture, Uncategorized
Your thoughts? Curious readers want to know. Lowest Prices of the Year! Click on the titles below to gift these books to a friend. Or, treat yourself this holiday. Mennonite Daughter: The Story of a Plain Girl Educational and thought-provoking ...
by MarianBeaman | Nov 15, 2023 | blog, Family / Nostalgia, Gratitude, meditation, Memory, Nostalgia, Uncategorized
‘Tis the season for roasting turkey. . . carving the bird. . . and expressing gratitude You can find dozens of tips on how to carve a turkey online. I found this one, on a website dubbed Webstaurant, demonstrating in 59 seconds flat a surefire way to...
by MarianBeaman | Nov 8, 2023 | blog, book review, Education, Family / Nostalgia, Memory, Mennonite History, Mennonite Lore, Uncategorized
How do you listen to a podcast or Zoom interview? Sit and stare into space? Take a walk? Lounge on your couch? Chop vegetables for soup? Multi-task in some other way? Last month, Barbara Vitelli, also known as blogger Book Club Mom, interviewed me via Zoom. She was...
by MarianBeaman | Oct 25, 2023 | blog, Cliff Beaman artist, Education, Family / Nostalgia, Gratitude, Literature, meditation, Uncategorized
Last week, Cliff and I attended my 60-year-college class reunion at Eastern Mennonite University in Virginia. Harrisonburg, VA is a long way from north Florida, so we took a Delta flight. The distance measured in time: a 14 to16-hour car trip, or a 4-hour flight,...
by MarianBeaman | Oct 18, 2023 | blog, Mennonite History, Mennonite Lore, neighborhood, Uncategorized
Deuteronomy 28:8 The Lord will send a blessing on your barns and on everything you put your hand to. The Lord your God will bless you in the land he is giving you.
by MarianBeaman | Oct 4, 2023 | blog, book review, Coming of Age, Family / Nostalgia, Memory, Quotations, Uncategorized
Do you crave sleep? Do you have a hard time going to sleep? Or, staying asleep? Falling Asleep Sleep is a sweet respite from the daily pressures of life. I treasure what Walt Whitman called the “free flight into the wordless, / Away from books, away from...
by MarianBeaman | Sep 27, 2023 | Amish fiction, book review, Conflict, Literature, popular culture, Quotations, Romance, Uncategorized
Turn on Hallmark Channel Watch for Glamorous female character, with swirling, highlighted hair and bright eyes. Note two handsome hunks: One real-estate mogul, loaded but with zero personality The other, a poor artist (or writer) with heart of gold...
by MarianBeaman | Sep 13, 2023 | blog, Cliff Beaman artist, Family / Nostalgia, Memory, Mennonite History, Nostalgia, Quotations, Uncategorized
As a kid, I helped my aproned Grandma Longenecker pick strawberries in her garden close to Anchor Road. As a teen, I packaged bologna at Baum’s Bologna company near Elizabethtown, PA. During my sophomore year in college, I worked as script editor for WEMC, the station...
by MarianBeaman | Aug 30, 2023 | blog, book review, Family / Nostalgia, Memory, Mennonite Lore, Quotations, Uncategorized
“If we’d open people up, we’d find landscapes.” ~ Agnès Varda I found this provocative line in a book I read recently (You Could Make This Place Beautiful by poet Maggie Smith, whose life has been rooted in Ohio). Seeing this line in her memoir, my mind...
