by MarianBeaman | Jun 29, 2013 | Family / Nostalgia, Memory, Mennonite Lore, Uncategorized
Thirty days hath September, April, June, and November. All the rest have thirty-one, Excepting February alone, And that has twenty-eight days clear, And twenty-nine in each leap year. Memory is at the heart of memoir. It fuels unfolding stories. A memoir writer like...
by MarianBeaman | Jun 26, 2013 | Coming of Age, Conflict, Family / Nostalgia, Mennonite Lore, Uncategorized
“Get out! Get out!” For heaven’s sake, that is my mom’s voice yelling at someone at the door. Why would she scream at a neighbor? But it wasn’t a neighbor. It was Stinky Joe. On a cold winter’s day, he had opened the door to the wash-house and was starting to...
by MarianBeaman | Jun 22, 2013 | Conflict, Family / Nostalgia, Mennonite History, Mennonite Lore, Uncategorized
Valentine’s Day conjures up images of hearts, flowers, and boxes of chocolate for most, but not for Yost. Yost is the father of Valentine Metzler, an ancester on my mother’s side of the family, born on Valentine’s Day, 1792. This past weekend, nearly 500 Metzlers from...
by MarianBeaman | Jun 19, 2013 | Conflict, Family / Nostalgia, Mennonite Lore, Uncategorized
Lititz Springs Park At the reunion, Uncle Clyde walks over to my mother and Aunt Cecilia to say something. We’re nosy and so we move closer to get within earshot. “Ruth, I believe Uncle Monroe’s and Uncle Herman’s bunch think you’re serving wine and won’t come over to...
by MarianBeaman | Jun 15, 2013 | Conflict, Family / Nostalgia, Mennonite Lore, Recipes, Uncategorized
I can hardly wait to go to the Metzler reunion in Lititz today. At Lititz Springs Park on the 2nd Sunday in July, I get to play with my cousins from my mother’s side of the family. My mother’s father, Abram, and her two uncles, Monroe and Herman, form the three...
by MarianBeaman | Jun 8, 2013 | Coming of Age, Family / Nostalgia, Lists, Mennonite Lore, Romance, Uncategorized
The year 1967 was historic: It was the year of the world’s first heart transplant. There were race riots in Detroit. Polaroid cameras were all the rage as was Twiggy. The average annual income was $ 7300.00 while a house cost about twice that much. Gas was a mere 33...
