by MarianBeaman | Oct 15, 2025 | blog, book review, Literature, Novel writing, Novel writing, Quotations, Travel, Uncategorized
How Do You Travel? I wonder how you enjoy traveling these days. Maybe you travel by car, boat, or plane. But you can also open books, a simple and inexpensive way to experience other times and places. Ipso-presto you are there! During October, I’ve traveled to...
by MarianBeaman | Jun 11, 2025 | blog, book review, Literature, Neighborhood / Environment, Nostalgia, Quotations, Reflection, Tips, Uncategorized
My home is open today. You are welcome to step inside. Come on in! After breakfast, I move to the blue velvet chair, the one I use for meditation, Bible reading and prayer with names of people I know and care about written on a prayer card. Sort...
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 | Feb 5, 2025 | blog, Literature, Mennonite Lore, Nostalgia, Quotations, Tips
How well I remember the sensation of the twin rubber rollers on the wringer of Mom’s white enamel washing machine pressing down hard on my young flesh from hand to lower arm—my screams—then Mom’s quick thrust, disengaging my arm from the wringer. When I...
by MarianBeaman | Aug 28, 2024 | blog, Family / Nostalgia, Literature, meditation, Neighborhood / Environment, Quotations, Tips
Like a blushing bride, impeccable from head to toe and listening for the first strains of the Wedding March, works of art require just that: Work and time to re-work. Years ago, as a professor teaching English literature, I introduced students to examples of exquisite...