by MarianBeaman | Mar 19, 2025 | blog, Coming of Age, Family / Nostalgia, Mennonite Lore, Uncategorized
It’s sometimes easy to spot too much of a good thing! An Overeaters’ Tanka Fried chicken and pie Burger with bun, cookies too Huge slice choc’late cake Oh, you sure must wish to die Too much of a good thing—fie! ©MLB 2025 A Tanka is a...
by MarianBeaman | Mar 14, 2025 | blog, book review, Coming of Age, Education, Novel writing, Novel writing, Quotations
In Honor of Women’s History Month 2025 Belle da Costa Greene, courtesy of J. P. Morgan Exhibitions My Review In the lush world of literature and the arts, librarian Ms. Belle da Costa Greene rises along with the fortunes of New York financier and...
by MarianBeaman | Mar 5, 2025 | blog, book review, Coming of Age, Literature, Memory, Novel writing, Novel writing, Tips, Uncategorized
When I retired from college teaching, my colleagues gifted me with an illustrated Alice in Wonderland. Last week when I pulled this book from the shelf, I flipped through the illustrations, focusing on the characters, especially the March Hare. Why?...
by MarianBeaman | Dec 11, 2024 | blog, Coming of Age, Education, Family / Nostalgia, Mennonite History, Mennonite Lore, Quotations, Tips, Uncategorized
Welcome to Tea Toast & Trivia Soon you’ll hear Rebecca’ s voice: “I’m your host, Rebecca Budd. I am a Blogger, Photographer, Traveler. Above all, I’m a life-long learner.” But first, an introduction. Rebecca and her husband...
by MarianBeaman | Nov 6, 2024 | blog, Coming of Age, Education, Nostalgia, Reflection, Uncategorized
It’s disgraceful—displaying a perfectly good violin as an ornament, but there it is—on top of my piano propped on a small brass easel! The thing is, it’s not perfectly good: the G string is missing altogether, a black peg has broken off the neck,...
by MarianBeaman | Sep 11, 2024 | blog, Coming of Age, Family / Nostalgia, Mennonite History, Mennonite Lore, Uncategorized
Waiting in the sitting room for my dad’s truck to arrive for me, I was a spectator, looking through the mahogany-trimmed doorway into the kitchen. Women with prayer caps, Grandma Longenecker and Aunt Ruthie, were sitting at the gray, Formica-topped table facing...