by MarianBeaman | Apr 15, 2013 | Family / Nostalgia, Uncategorized
On the plane from Jacksonville, Florida to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania my dark, curly-haired seat mate is playing MahJong on her iPad. She is content clicking and dragging tiles with red, green, blue curlicue Chinese letters across the screen, relaxing and whiling away...
by MarianBeaman | Apr 10, 2013 | Family / Nostalgia, Lists, Uncategorized
One day at Elizabethtown High School, a lovely girl from Mississippi with long, red locks strolled into our class a month or two into the term. We were mesmerized by her Southern drawl and relaxed manner. Her name was Jeannine Loux, a last name which she stretched out...
by MarianBeaman | Apr 4, 2013 | Family / Nostalgia, Uncategorized
Mom as a Child Mom Jiving to iPod Music My mother never had a bucket list, and if she had one, jiving to “Life is Like a Mountain Railroad” on my iPod would not have been on it. My mother grew up on a dairy farm...
by MarianBeaman | Apr 3, 2013 | Coming of Age, Uncategorized
MY STORY Wayne is good in math. He with the crew-cut and quiet, methodical ways can easily navigate math’s maze of numbers. We are both fourth graders at Rheems Elementary School. Unlike me, Wayne is a mathematical whiz; in a split second he makes sense of long...
by MarianBeaman | Mar 29, 2013 | Family / Nostalgia, Lists, Uncategorized
1. Quiet time for Mom 12 – 3 p.m. on Good Friday afternoon to correspond to part of the time Christ hung on the cross. 2. Easter jackets fully lined in pastel tweeds or plaids made by Aunt Ruthie. Easter dresses by Mom, sometimes with smocking or embroidery. 3....
by MarianBeaman | Mar 25, 2013 | Mennonite Lore, Uncategorized
When I was about 6 weeks old, my parents took me to church–Bossler Mennonite Church close to Elizabethtown, PA. I was born in July–9 months, almost to the day, from my parents’ honeymoon night the previous October. When I got older and could figure...
by MarianBeaman | Mar 19, 2013 | Romance, Uncategorized
Whenever I leaf through my Bible, I often spot a special verse, Genesis 12:1, and note the date in the margin, July 1966: “Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will show you.” This is the catalyst for...
by MarianBeaman | Mar 15, 2013 | Conflict, Family / Nostalgia, neighborhood, Neighborhood / Environment, tree surgery, Uncategorized
It’s a long way from Lancaster county, PA to Jacksonville, FL, but years ago our family moved into a neighborhood called Killarney Shores with street names like Emerald Isle Circle, Leprechaun Court, and St. Patrick Lane. On the day of Ireland’s famous...
by MarianBeaman | Mar 12, 2013 | Conflict, Uncategorized
They were gathered in a circle when I walked in. Call it naivete or being preoccupied with my classes, I was totally unprepared for the conclave of bishops, school administrators and other assorted male authorities that greeted me on entering the conference room at...
by MarianBeaman | Mar 9, 2013 | Recipes, Uncategorized
A throw-back to celebrations in the Old Country, Fasnacht Day had its origins in Switzerland, southern Germany, Alsace, and western Austria. In Pennsylvania Dutch Country, Fasnacht Day is celebrated on the eve before Lent. Think “Mardi Gras” but less bawdy! Aunt...
