Magical Memoir Moments
Three Amazing God Stories from My Self-Chosen Amtrak Writer’s Residency
When we travel, we multiply the chances that we encounter a “once in a lifetime” event that defies all odds, seemingly flying to us on wings from the universe. I like to think of these times as God moments. Or, as my sister Doris says, “God’s poetry.” On our BookTourAnniversaryPalooza, on Amtrak, July 1-28, 2014,…
On Being Not Quite Amish: A Mennonite Perspective
Last evening, as Stuart and I came into Union Station by train here in Chicago, we followed two young Amish families. They walked rapidly, carrying a matching powder blue luggage set without wheels, assorted other bags, and several babies. The men wore black hats. The women black bonnets, black hose, and long dresses. Everyone around…
Blessed Are the Peacemakers: Grandma Hershey’s Way of Peace
When I think of peacemakers, I don’t think of soldiers or guns or even the Peace Corps. I think of this verse from the Sermon on the Mount. “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God.” Then I think of Grandma Hershey. Grandma Hershey was soft. When I was sick,…
The Tie that Binds: How Mennonite College Friendships Grew from Twig to Vine
I’ve just said good-bye to my three closest college friends: Mary, Tina, and Gloria. We gathered in Gloria’s home, State College, Pennsylvania, just to renew our friendship for three days. This photo was taken next to a pergola covered with trumpet vine. The story of how the vine grew over time, told by Gloria the…
Mennonite Memoir, Lutheran Setting, Universal Spirit: Reconnecting After Twenty Years
My Mennonite memoir had a Lutheran birthplace: Valparaiso University. I was a Senior Fellow in the Lilly Fellows Program in Humanities and the Arts (LFP), headquartered at Valparaiso, in 1994-95. The name Valparaiso means Vale of Paradise. Mark Schwehn, who led both Christ College and the LFP when I was there, wrote the book that…
Interview with Carol Bodensteiner, Memoirist Turned Novelist
Meet Carol Bodensteiner. Pershaps you already have. Fellow writer Janet Givens refers to her as my twin! That’s because both of us wrote memoirs about being country girls and growing up on dairy farms. But only one of us is a blonde. 1. Your first book was about growing up on an Iowa dairy farm…
Three Reasons to Read Your Memoir in New York City
Some writers leave the provinces and yield to the siren call of the city in their youth. My favorite author Willa Cather did that. She was published by Alfred A. Knopf, a powerful imprint designating quality, so powerful it has survived many mergers and is part of Penguin Random House, one of the Big Five…