by MarianBeaman | Dec 23, 2015 | blog, Education, Family / Nostalgia, Gratitude, Nostalgia, Recipes, Travel, Uncategorized
“I have always relied on the kindness of strangers,” admits Blanche DuBois, an aging belle in Tennessee Williams’ classic play A Streetcar Named Desire. Blanche has had the props knocked from under her and has nowhere to turn except to her sister Stella, also living...
by MarianBeaman | Dec 16, 2015 | blog, Family / Nostalgia, meditation, Mennonite Lore, Nostalgia, Reflection, Uncategorized
Mother’s house on Anchor Road has been sold. We sold it last fall, just a year ago. After more than seventy years, the Longeneckers do not own this house. But that doesn’t mean there are no memories or longings for home. The Welsh have a word for such a feeling,...
by MarianBeaman | Nov 25, 2015 | blog, Family / Nostalgia, Gratitude, meditation, Nostalgia, Quotations, Uncategorized
Are you a thankful person? Do you ever think about what your life would be like without certain blessings? Robert Emmons, touted as one of the world’s leading experts on the science of gratitude, says that “one effective way of stimulating gratitude” is to reflect on...
by MarianBeaman | Nov 14, 2015 | blog, Coming of Age, Family / Nostalgia, Mennonite History, Mennonite Lore, Nostalgia, Travel, Uncategorized
Every week, The New Yorker magazine features a Cartoon Caption Contest, inviting readers to submit a caption for consideration. After three finalists are chosen, readers vote for the winning caption. Recently, in my cache of Kodak carousels I found a slide from the...
by MarianBeaman | Nov 11, 2015 | blog, Cliff Beaman artist, Family / Nostalgia, Mennonite History, Mennonite Lore, Nostalgia, Quotations, Reflection, Uncategorized
My brother Mark was my first baby. He was born when I was 12, and I soon became a mother to him. I even have a picture to prove it, a blurry movie still from one of Aunt Ruthie’s 16 millimeter camera shoots. I most certainly bottle fed him and changed his...
by MarianBeaman | Nov 4, 2015 | blog, Family / Nostalgia, Literature, Quotations, Travel, Uncategorized
Dr. Seuss explores the maze of life in his famous book Oh, the Places You’ll Go! On the first page he assures readers: You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose. And that’s just what Jenna and Ian did...
