by MarianBeaman | Jun 12, 2019 | blog, Cliff Beaman artist, Family / Nostalgia, meditation, neighborhood, Neighborhood / Environment, Romance, Uncategorized
“Whoa, what have we got here?” Daddy Cliff asked as he made a ceremony of pulling a heavy rectangle out of the paper bag. “It’s your Father’s Day card!” Joel exclaimed, looking at his dad’s face, smiling from ear to ear. Eyeballing the odd card, Dad fingered the...
by MarianBeaman | Apr 24, 2019 | blog, Cliff Beaman artist, Coming of Age, Family / Nostalgia, Literature, Mennonite History, Mennonite Lore, Quotations, Reflection, Uncategorized
Pear Tree Blossoms Blossoms on our pear tree beside the lake peek out A few at a time Then more . . . and, finally, the pear tree standing in a dress of white blossoms. Book writing, too, starts small . . . My memoir began as a Kinko-bound...
by MarianBeaman | Feb 13, 2019 | blog, book review, Cliff Beaman artist, Family / Nostalgia, Mennonite History, Mennonite Lore, Nostalgia, Quotations, Uncategorized
“I wonder what a DNA test would show. My dad’s Scotch-Irish I think and my mother is full-blooded German. But maybe some other genes are mixed in there,” my husband mused. “Well, there’s one sure way to find out. Get a DNA test,” I replied. And so for Christmas 2018...
by MarianBeaman | Feb 6, 2019 | blog, Cliff Beaman artist, Family / Nostalgia, Mennonite History, Mennonite Lore, Nostalgia, Uncategorized
Guessing game: The era, the people, the building?
by MarianBeaman | Jan 9, 2019 | blog, Cliff Beaman artist, Tips, Travel
“Did you know Mt. Dora is about 180 feet above sea level?” asked our chatty waiter serving us coffee on a recent trip to this charming town during the Christmas holiday. Florida is flat. But northwest of Orlando near the center of the state lies Mt. Dora...
by MarianBeaman | Nov 28, 2018 | blog, book review, Cliff Beaman artist, Family / Nostalgia, Mennonite History, Mennonite Lore, Quotations, Tips, Uncategorized
My Mennonite parents laughed very little, except when relatives and friends tickled their funny bones. They took the business of parenting very seriously. Other relatives lit up with a sense of humor: I carry an image of my Grandma Fannie and Aunt Ruthie once slapping...
