Magical Memoir Moments
The Headache by Lydia, age 7
A few weeks ago, Lydia and I went to Allentown with Lydia’s mom. When I climbed into the car, I could tell that taking a long drive was not Lydia’s idea of a good time today. I sat in the back seat with my special “Frida bag” to help make the time go faster. Inside…
Digging Up a Hidden Heritage
Since I am the first person in both sides of my Mennonite family to go to college, and since my family praised “common sense” over too much “book learning,” I was surprised to discover recently that some of my earliest ancestors in America were actually public school pioneers. I should not have been totally surprised…
What Will Your Death Illustrate?
He was the most powerful congressman in America during the Civil War. He helped unknown hundreds escape to freedom on the Underground Railroad. All pictures of him show a man of determination, a man who knew suffering, a man who eased the sufferings of others. His name was Thaddeus Stevens, and he represented Lancaster County,…
My Friend Elliott
Did you realize that among the 20,000 young individuals transitioning out of foster care annually upon reaching the age of eighteen, a staggering 40% will grapple with homelessness within just three years? This stark reality casts a shadow over the lives of individuals like Elliott Glover, who narrowly escaped the same fate. However, homelessness is…
Separation of Church and State
The reason my family today is American and not Swiss is due to religious persecution. How to explain this? My religious ancestors left behind few words for future posterity. Felix Manz and Conrad Grebel, the earliest Anabaptists, were well-educated, ardent seekers during the early Reformation, who disputed with the leader of the Reformed movement, Ulrich…
What’s Good About Aging?
I turned 75 years old on July 30. This is the first birthday that seems undeniably like the beginning of old age — three quarters of the way to 100. Six years away from the average American female life expectancy of 81. No matter my fate, I am beginning to see the horizon and the…
Cancer and Father’s Day
It began on Thanksgiving week. It has ended, for now at least, on Father’s Day week. In between were consultations with oncologists and surgeons, surgery, proton radiation treatments, and infusions of the drug Keytruda every six weeks. And now. . . Stuart’s malignant melanoma is gone! The doctor declared him to be “cancer free.” In…
Grandmas For Love
It started with a sidewalk conversation just after we moved to Lititz in 2021. I was admiring the artwork of my neighbor, Margaret Thorn, and trading stories about the Warwick High School Class of 1966 with her husband, my WHS classmate, Art Thorn. Margaret told me she had spoken at the local school board meeting….
Ukrainian Grandma Star
The war in Ukraine has touched the hearts of millions around the world. Many people have found ways to show their concern. For two years in a row, a group of friends in our community has made comforters to ship to Ukraine. But one reader has a more personal connection. Let me introduce you to Lisa…
The Grandsandwich Generation
Last Sunday after church, I brought my daughter, granddaughter, Mother, and a bowl of cookie batter to my sister Doris’ house. We joined her and her daughter, two granddaughters, and my niece Joyous and her daughter. We had lunch together and then decorated Easter cookies and made chocolate peanut butter eggs. Another way to describe…