Mary’s Special Day

BEANERY ONLINE LITERARY MAGAZINE

MARY’S SPECIAL DAY  

Anonymous  

     We wondered if Mary’s first grade music teacher was tone deaf. Why else would she have chosen Mary to sing a solo in the upcoming Christmas program?

     Needless to say, Mary’s father and I, her mother, were thrilled that she was picked.

     For several weeks Mary would burst into song no matter where we were. To say the least, it was sometimes embarrassing. She seemed to delight in singing while

Idlewild Amusement Park Memories

BEANERY ONLINE LITERARY MAGAZINE

IDLEWILD AMUSEMENT PARK MEMORIES

Patricia Orendorff Smith

     Many of us have visited Idlewild Park in Ligonier Township, Pennsylvania. I asked my friend, Jackie, to recount her memories in the late 1950s to the 1970s.

     “Since I was a baby, my dad attended Rockwell Manufacturing, Inc. picnics at Idlewild,” Jackie said. Her family has slides of their time spent there. “I wonder if I remember the occasion or if my memories come from the pictures.”     

     Jackie’s first memory at four years of age revolved around the roller coaster. She thinks she was too young to ride the tall ride.

     “My sister and I always wanted a gold fish at the Goldfish Pond,” Jackie said. “My sister got one.” Jackie was determined to get a goldfish. She saved money and when she was eight, she won a goldfish. “I had to walk around the park all day (carrying it).” On the ride home, Jackie remembered

Mother’s Day

BEANERY ONLINE LITERARY MAGAZINE

MOTHER’S DAY

Fran

Two toddler boys run in for hugs and kisses,
     but someone’s missing
Two little boys, bearing gifts made themselves,
     but someone’s missing
My teenage sons, now working, take mom out for lunch,
     but

Finding Ben

BEANERY ONLINE LITERARY MAGAZINE

FINDING BEN

Pat

     A press release on Finding Ben states, “Everyone needs love and affection—no matter what. For any parent who has ever experienced disappointment in their child’s failures comes Barbara LaSalle’s Finding Ben: a Mother’s Journey through the Maze of Asperger’s.
     Finding Ben is an honest portrait of parental love. Written in novel form, the book tells the story of what it is like to suffer from what the author calls ‘disappointed mother

Little Ears Are Listening

BEANERY ONLINE LITERARY MAGAZINE

LITTLE EARS ARE LISTENING

Fran

     “I want to be a body tool when I grow up!” little Jerry told his mom.
     “A what?” the very surprised mom asked.
     Jerry looked her square in the face and said, more loudly, “I told you I want to grow up to be a body tool just like daddy.”
     The young mom was at a loss for words. Daddy was an ad executive who occasionally did ad work for tool companies, but to her knowledge the little boy had never seen any of them. And the last thing she wanted was for her son to

THE SWEETNESS LASTS A LIFETIME!!! An Adoption Reunion Story

BEANERY ONLINE LITERARY MAGAZINE

THE SWEETNESS LASTS A LIFETIME!!!

AN ADOPTION REUNION STORY

Fran

     1964, a warm June day when my daughter began life. Placed in my arms, the sweet face, dark hair, such tiny feet and hands. All five pounds of not much of anything.
But such an impact on my life!
     As I sat there after she was taken to the nursery, I realized that her life was to begin anew, with someone else to love her, care for, and raise her to adulthood. Not my choice, but at age seventeen, with no support, and no way to provide a home, I knew, deep in my heart that she needed

CURLS AT TWELVE YEARS OLD

BEANERY ONLINE LITERARY MAGAZINE

CURLS AT TWELVE YEARS OLD 

Erin

 

I remember:

His hair bounced,
Silken smooth apple butter color,
Causing me to turn back twice
With the way it moved.
Sometimes now, I wish I had his hair
With all the curls.

I remember:

My fingers jumped in and swam,
In the

THANKSGIVING READINGS & GREETINGS

BEANERY ONLINE LITERARY MAGAZINE

 

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

From the

BEANERY WRITERS GROUP

 

 

TWO THANKSGIVING STORIES:

THE SNITTY CAT LIKES PUMPKIN PIE?

LEFTOVER TURKEY

 

To read a post about the birthmother in LEFTOVER TURKEY:

PENNSYLVANIA WEDDING, (LAMOINE) MAINE ROOTS

 

 

ADDITIONAL READING:

RIDING THE RAILS: A True Story

“DATING WHEN FIFTY-SOME:” A Guy’s Version

LEAF-PEEPING: Autumn Leaves

THOUGHTS FOR DAVID

JUST ANOTHER WEEKEND IN PARADISE

AND NOW, THE FORECAST

THE ART OF THE INTERVIEW: Things Writers Should Know

MY HAPPY PLACE

DAVID PAGE: Notes from St. David’s Writer’s Conference

LOBSTER-TALES

FLASHY MOON EXPLOSIONS

Old Dawn & A New Dawn

BEANERY ONLINE LITERARY MAGAZINE

Old Dawn & A New Dawn

The Photodoctor

 
 
work ends
time card marked
tired worker
steps fall
as he
walks home
 
problems at work
lean on him hard
problems with a

RIDING THE RAILS: A True Story

BEANERY ONLINE LITERARY MAGAZINE

RIDING THE RAILS

NELLIE RIGGS McQUILLIS

 

This piece is included in a self-published book of short stories written by a new contributor, Nellie Riggs McQuillis. TALES FROM THE FOUR MILE RUN was written and published in the 1980s, after her retirement. She taught in the Ligonier (PA) School District between 1936 and 1978, except for a few years when she took time out to grow a family.

     “Now, you young ones pay attention. You’re not to leave this place today. Do you hear me?”
     “Of course,” I said. “They can probably hear you half way to…”
     “What’s that?” he said, whirling around.
     “I said of course we hear you. We hafta stay in this place.”
     Then he was gone.
     We jumped up from the table, scraped the rest of our oatmeal into the dog’s dish on the porch and prayed he’d eat it before Mom came up from the cellar, where she was hunting Mason jars for canning beans.
     Then