by MarianBeaman | Apr 12, 2014 | Family / Nostalgia, Literature, meditation, Memory, Purple Passage, Quotations, Reflection, Uncategorized
LILACS April is the cruellest month, breeding Lilacs out of the dead land, mixing Memory and desire, stirring Dull roots and spring rain. T. S. Eliot The Waste-Land When Lilacs last in the dooryard bloom’d And the great star early droop’d in the western sky in...
by MarianBeaman | Mar 22, 2014 | Education, Gratitude, Literature, meditation, Memory, Purple Passage, Quotations, Reflection, Uncategorized
Purple Passages with a Fish & a Kiss, March 2014 Edition Winter Winter lies too long in country towns; hangs on until it is stale and shabby, old and sullen. Willa Cather, My Antonia If winter comes, can spring be far behind? Percy Bysshe Shelley “Ode to...
by MarianBeaman | Feb 26, 2014 | Coming of Age, Conflict, Education, Literature, meditation, Quotations, Reflection, Uncategorized
Tucked under the signature of my Florida driver’s license are two words in blood-red that indicate that I am an organ donor. This means that if I were in a fatal crash, my kidneys, liver, lungs, corneas—even my heart could be harvested for transplantation. Harvested...
by MarianBeaman | Feb 14, 2014 | Education, Family / Nostalgia, Literature, meditation, Memory, Nostalgia, Romance, Uncategorized
“All you need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn’t hurt.” So says Charles M. Schulz. Valentine’s Day is interpreted by many to include cards, chocolates, candlelight and roses. Some even break the bank buying expensive jewelry....
by MarianBeaman | Feb 8, 2014 | meditation, Neighborhood / Environment, Reflection, Uncategorized
Ordinarily, I am proud of my patio garden. But January 2014 was tough in Florida: two nights in the 20s and several days around the freeze point. And so the plants in my garden took a beating. The impatiens, in spite of being covered, froze to death. The pentas...
by MarianBeaman | Feb 5, 2014 | Coming of Age, Literature, meditation, Uncategorized
Now you are probably thinking . . . age 72 is a long way off, or it’s just around the corner. Either way, it’s a question worth pondering. In 1700 the average life expectancy was 37. In fact, 40 would be pushing it. Yet, in that very year Mary Granville...